American Ghoul
by Moshier1
Summary: What happens when a father and son come to visit an old friend in Tokyo, and step into a world of violence and death far greater than what they are used to. Can they survive in Tokyo without the aid of a few notable locals? Spinoff AU. Spoilers.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello! Welcome to American Ghoul, my Tokyo Ghoul fanfiction. Just a few warnings, this story takes place after Chapter 40 of the sequel manga, Tokyo Ghoul :Re, so be ready for some spoilers.**

 **Don't forget to favorite or follow, and I always enjoy any kind of review!**

* * *

"Sir, would you like anymore coffee?"

The big man, handsome but greyhaired, occupying the window seat of the airliner waved the hostess offer away, as did the very similar looking, but much younger man seated next to him. As the hostess continued her rounds through the sleep craft, the older man leaned closer to his counterpart, who was sweating profusely.

"If you're hungry, take one of the pills," He said in barely a whisper, "I'd prefer not to have an incident before we land in Tokyo."

"Ok, Dad," The younger one said, reaching into a pocket and pulling a small capsule out, popping it in his mouth quickly and discretely, "I know I should have eaten before we left, but…"

G. Abraham Lincoln, known as Abe to his friends, looked at his son with a hint of compassion.

"…You didn't want to eat Ghoul. I know, Aeneas." He paused, waiting for the hostess to pass by the empty seat at the end of their row, before continuing, "But sometimes we have to do what we don't want to. And at least, we have to help keep the streets clean."

His son looked down at his hands, and the plane flew for several more minutes before either of them spoke.

"Why are we even going to Tokyo?" Aeneas said, looking past his father at the coastline of Japan as they flew northward. "And why didn't we bring Sis or Mom?"

"Because an old friend called me a few weeks ago and asked if I could come out for a while," His father explained, pulling a magazine from the seat in front of him and flipping idly through the pages as he spoke. "Your mother can't be spared from work, and Diana is in school. And your Mother and I thought this would be a nice graduation present."

Aeneas fell silent once again, wiping sweaty palms on the front of his slacks. Before he could respond to his father, the airliners captain came on the intercom and announced they were beginning to land. A half hour later, they were walking through the terminal, carrying the minimum of baggage they'd chosen to bring with them.

"Do you know where this hotel is?" Abe asked their taxi driver as he handed him the address he'd written down on a slip of paper. As the man nodded wordlessly, Aeneas watched the people walking by their vehicle, trying to pick up a scent.

 _Who's a Ghoul? Who's just a human?_

He let that thought linger as the taxi pulled out and headed for their hotel.

It took about an hour to get through the afternoon traffic, as thousands of people tried to get home for the weekend. The hotel was upscale, but not luxurious in a ward called Shinjuku. And in several areas surrounding Shinjuku, according to their taxi driver, who had grown progressively more talkative, there were gangs that roamed in both day and night.

When Aeneas had flashed a look of distaste, his father had given him a look he knew well.

 _It's part of our feeding schedule._

And that was how life went for an American Ghoul. Although known to the general, unlike in Japan the government had never stripped Ghouls of their rights, and had instead coopted them. Those that worked _with_ the government were generally left alone, as long as they only fed on criminals and those deviants that would disrupt human society. Those that _didn't_ work with them…

 _Are hunted down and exterminated. Just like_ any _of my kind in this country._

Their room was small, but well appointed, and the two of them took a few moments to get unpacked and remove their shoes.

"Nothing quite like a good stretch after a long flight," His father said, arms stretching well past where they should have, "Those seats _kill_ your back."

"You're not _that_ old, Dad." Aeneas responded, folding a pair of jeans and putting them in a drawer.

"I guess not, but getting older still isn't fun." He said, throwing the contents of his own small suitcase messily onto the top of his own set of drawers. "Hurry up, I want to get to my buddy's place before it gets dark."

And so, not even ten minutes later, the two of them walked outside and hailed another cab, his father switching into Japanese without a hitch. Aeneas' Japanese was much worse, and apparently he had an atrocious accent according to his teacher. But it got them by, and into the neighboring district.

Unfortunately, all they arrived at was a pile of rubble.

"This _is_ the address." His father said, looking about them. Aeneas watched as his father pulled his phone out and consulted it, before trying to make a call. "Kuzen, it's Abe. I just landed. What happened to you shop?"

It took a moment for Aeneas to figure out his father was leaving a message, and he'd never heard his father speak of anyone named "Kuzen". He expressed interest once his father hung the phone up and returned it to his pocket.

"Kuzen and I met, hell, feels like _decades_ , ago." His father began, eyes seeming to mist over. "He and I nearly came to blows, over a kill, when I was stationed here after being in 'Nam."

"I never knew you were stationed here!"

"Really?" His father said, tapping his chin with an index finger. "Well, it must have been your sister I told. Doesn't really matter, cause I have no idea how else to contact Kuzen. This may have been a wasted trip."

Aeneas shrugged, feeling uncomfortable, like someone was watching. He began to turn his head, to sniff the air, but his father patted his back.

"Don't look." He said out of the corner of his mouth, as Aeneas felt someone, a pair of someone's, approaching, "This isn't like home. They'll kill us if they suspect."

"Excuse me, can we help you?" Someone said in English behind them.

They finally turned, and his father plastered a smile on his face even as Aeneas had to hide a frown. He'd read about _these_ people before. They both wore formal suits, one a small, stout woman and the other a tall, thickly built man. The attaché cases each carried were a dead giveaway.

"Actually, yes." His father began, "My son and I were supposed to meet a friend for dinner, but it appears the address has been moved. Could you help us find it?"

He handed the woman who had spoken the paper that listed the restaurants address, and she took several moments to gaze at it.

"Sanji, didn't they move that restaurant over a few blocks?" She asked her big partner. The man simply nodded, not taking his eyes off of Abe or Aeneas.

"Do you think you could show us where? I must admit I don't know these streets very well."

Aeneas nearly took a step back at the woman's predatory smile, which flashed across her face for a bare moment before she nodded and walked past them. His father simply turned and followed the pair of CCG agents as they walked down the street.

"So how long are you here for?" The female agent asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Oh, a week or so. We were hoping to do a little sightseeing." His father said, trying to be as vague as he could.

They took a turn down a dimly lit alley, and Aeneas felt his father tense slightly.

 _This is bad_. Aeneas thought, knowing they were being lead to a trap. _How did they figure out who we were?_

"That's nice." The agent said, stopping and turning as they reached the halfway point, hand tightening nearly imperceptibly on the cases handle, "Were you also hoping to sample our exotic cuisine?"

He never saw his father move, simply felt it, as his father's kagune burst out, forming a pair of shining shields over each of his arms. Aeneas had seen his father use it before… But this was different. They were facing down a pair of cinque wielding investigators.

"I am Investigator Yuna Tokashi, and this is my partner Investigator Senji Fujimoto."

"I don't care who in the hell you are." His father's voice had taken on a tone he'd never heard before, as if he was a totally different person. "We are American citizens. Leave us alone, or else we're going to have a diplomatic _incident_."

"Then let's have an incident." The big man, Senji, finally spoke, as he leapt forward, the blade of his cinque stabbing for his father's throat.

Aeneas was frozen in place, eyes wide, as his father, eyes changing color, deftly deflected the weapon, and then grunted in pain as the woman stabbed her pair of short dagger-like blades into his father's abdomen.

Abe took a swipe at Investigator Senji, but he ducked under the blow.

"What kind of a moron Ghoul would show up _here_ of all places." Investigator Yuna said, as Abe lost an ear. " _Stupid._ Why would your stupid country allow a monster like _you_ to be a citizen? You're kind should only be given death!"

She died as Aeneas own Kagune exploded from his back and shoulders, the strange reddish tentacle impaled her through the heart. Senji jumped back, as the kagune from his shoulders, very similar to his own fathers, swept through the air a bare fingers width from the bridge of his nose.

"A _Chimera_?" He said, before dying himself, as Abe took advantage of his momentary surprise, and impaled him through the stomach.

"Damn." His father said, looking at their bloody, ruined clothes. And at the pools of blood surrounding them. "We need to find someplace to hide. Our hotel is a no-go."

Their kagune disappeared, as Aeneas helped his father down the alleyway, past the bodies. Night was finally beginning in earnest, and streetlights began to pop on at the end of the alleyway. It was this flickering of light that drew his eye, and illuminated the group of figures. The figures wearing formal suits and carrying attaché cases.

"Surround and exterminate." One of them, a young man with short, dark hair said. And the dozen men and woman moved at the order.

"Aeneas… Run!"

His father's kagune reappeared, but it changed even as Aeneas began to move towards the other end of the alley. The armor seemed to move up his arms, as a horrific mask formed across his face. When the armor stopped, it covered him from head to toe. Aeneas thought he looked like the pictures of medieval knights, but his armor moved like it was alive.

That was the last sight Aeneas had of his father, as he leapt, grabbing a fire escape and heading towards the roof.

 _Damnit, Dad!_

He ran as hard as he could, hearing the sounds of battle reach a crescendo behind him, he stopped and turned.

"Hey, idiot." As if by reflex, his kagune whipping outwards towards the Japanese voice. He missed, badly, and toppled backwards as someone hit him in the chest. He rolled, coming up on his feet, ready to defend again. But he stopped, looking at the guy and girl standing before him. One was… cute, but the look of anger on her face was even harsher than the light haired man beside her. "You looking for trouble?"

"N-… no." He got out, as a third figure appeared beside him. This one wore a mask, reminiscent of a ravens head. He removed it as he began to speak.

"We need to get out of here," The well-built, silver haired man said, seeming almost bored as she spoke, "They just finished off that ghoul."

Aeneas world seemed to tilt on its side, as he heard the man speak of his Dad's death as if he spoke of the weather. He fell to his knees in shock, as the three ghouls watched him.

"Dad…"

"If you want to live, come with us." The girl said. "We have a place you can lay low."

And with that, they disappeared into a nearby stairwell, one of them having smashed the lock with their kagune.

With a final look over his shoulder towards the now silent battleground, he followed them into the stairwell.


	2. Chapter 2

"Alrighty, kid, who in the hell are you?"

Aeneas was seated in a rather cozy coffee shop, as his three… rescuers sat and stood around him. They'd taken him on a rather roundabout route that ended with them coming out of a manhole in a backalley just around the corner from the front of the shop. The girl had made four cups of coffee, in silence, as they sat there.

"I'm… Aeneas," He said, slowly, as he stumbled over the words in Japanese, "I'm from…"

"America." The girl interrupted from where she leaned against the countertop. "We guessed from that horrible accent of yours. Now, _why_ are you here?"

He nervously wrung his hands, letting his hands drift around the room. He didn't know these people! They could be cannibals, and without his Dad or Mom…

 _I'm no better_ … A familiar thought, a memory, began, but he quickly smashed it.

"I was… here with my Father." He began. "We were here to see…"

He rattled off the address, and said the name of his father's friend. He flinched as the girl stood straight up.

"Kuzen? That was Yoshimura's old name…"

"Then that man, this boys' father," The silver haired man said from where he sat across the room, "Was the American that Yoshimura told me stories about. The Death's Head Demon. His kakuja fits the descriptions."

"Then… Kuzen is Yoshimura?" Aeneas asked, as their eyes turned as one back to him. "Where is Yoshimura?"

At the threes downcast looks, he knew that something was wrong.

"Yoshimura hasn't been heard from for a couple of years, he was most likely killed in a raid."

"But my Dad spoke to him only a few weeks ago!" It took him a moment, an embarrassingly long moment, to notice that he'd exclaimed in English and not Japanese. He quickly repeated himself. "At least, he thought it was him…"

The three spoke quickly, far quicker than he could follow, in a language that he barely understood. Finally, they stopped, seeming to have come to some kind of a decision.

"Did you bring anything with you? Clothes, supplies?" The slim man asked.

"They're at our hotel in Shinjuku."

The girl rolled her eyes.

"What kind of Ghoul would be idiotic enough to get a hotel _there_?" She said, looking down at him, taking a sip of her coffee. "Give us the hotel info, and we'll get what we can. Sending you out into the world will be dangerous enough from how we've seen you move around."

The three dispersed, the slim man heading out into the street, a hood pulled up over his head. The man went into the back room, while the girl stayed with him, sitting on the bar with her hands in her own hoodie.

"Oh, god…" He groaned, thinking of what he was going to tell his Mom, if he could ever get word to her. How could Dad be dead? And who in the hell was the Death's Head Demon?

"He really is dead, you know." The girl said from her seat. Aeneas head whipped up, as anger gripped him. "The Doves don't mess around. And you two fools ran right into a raid lead by high ranking Doves at that. You're lucky to be alive."

"There's a chance he…" He said hopefully, more for himself than for her.

"No. There isn't. Your Father is dead." She looked away when she saw the tears running down his cheeks before continuing, "I know how you feel, they took my Father as well. But you need to accept it, now."

He covered his face with his hands, fighting the sobs that were threatening to erupt.

 _God, how did this all go so wrong? Why did this have to happen?_

He didn't even notice that he'd fallen asleep, until the shining light of the next day woke him. Looking around, he saw that they must have moved him to a room above the café. The couch he slept on was hard and uncomfortable, but the pillow under his head was soft, at least. Sitting up, he saw a pair of familiar suitcases by the little room's door.

Going to his, he opened it and found _most_ of his things. His passport was gone, though, as was most of his money. Taking out a clean shirt and pants, he quickly undressed, using the small attached bathroom to clean the dried blood from his body and hair. There was a note attached to the small mirror, pointing towards a neatly folded uniform.

 _A waiter's uniform?_

When he walked out into the hallway, he found the silver haired man waiting for him. He simply nodded towards the stairwell at the end of the hall, and gestured for Aeneas to follow. To where customers were already seated and conversing.

"Yo, Ace," The slim man greeted him at the bottom of the stairs, "I'm Nishiki, by the way. Did you get all your stuff?"

When he asked about the missing passport and the other minor items, he shrugged.

"The Doves got there first. Place was ransacked. I grabbed what I could."

"Well… thank you." Was all he got out before the girl appeared.

"You're going to work here until we figure out what to do with you. So go start scrubbing dishes."

Looking towards the sink, he saw that there was already a rather respectable pile forming. The girl had already walked off to greet a group of customers.

"Wow, Touka doesn't like you." Nishiki said, chuckling. "Well, you better get to it. Renji, mind grabbing some more bread from the back?"

And that was how his first day went. He stood at the sink, scrubbing vigorously, as plates and cups and silverware made their way back to him. Towards the end of the day, he looked up as a group of several ghouls entered, conversed with Touka and Nishiki, and then departed. When he asked Renji, who had joined him at the sink to help, he'd simply gotten a blank stare in return. At some point, Nishiki's nickname had stuck as well, because, as he put it, his actual name was pretty stupid.

When the café closed, he was allowed a cup of coffee, and then was filled in by the trio of owners on what had happened.

"There's a gang moving in on our territory," Touka said, watching his reaction, "They've been trying to move against us for a few years, but we've always kicked the crap out of them. But it looks like they found some new friends."

"And you want me too...?"

"We'd like you to come with us." Touka said. "Since there will be a chance for you to feed, if you're hungry. We don't have enough supplies right now for all of us."

He _was_ hungry, and so he ended up sloshing through a sewer, heading down into the underworld. The others, including who he thought were the Ghouls who'd visited the restaurant earlier, were masked. They'd given him an open faced motorcycle helmet that barely fit, a pair of goggles, and a bandana that he used to cover his mouth.

Touka took the lead as they exited the sewer.

"Ace, now's your chance to go feed." Nishiki said when he got out. "There are some guys down the street that should be pretty easy."

He nodded, and then watched as the group disappeared onto the rooftops. Putting his hands into the pockets of his only remaining jacket, he walked slowly down the street, doing his best to stay out of the pools of light spilled by the lampposts. It was as he approached another alleyway that he heard the sounds of a struggle.

"Stupid bitch, what in the hell do you think you're…"

Ace turned the corner, finding a pair of men groping a woman they'd pushed against the wall. He nearly spoke, but the smell of blood and the stench of a Ghoul assailed his senses. The two men slumped to the ground in pieces, their blood pooling.

"Well, hello there." The woman said, licking the blood off her lips. She wore a short, tight dress, revealing a large amount of her cleavage. She looked at him from under her slightly messy red hair. "You're new around here."

Ace didn't say anything, simply stood there, ready to run.

"It isn't nice to stare, why don't you come enjoy a meal with me, since these two won't be enjoying anything anymore." She held out a severed hand. "And I think you'll be a better date than these two turned out to be, anyways."

Carefully, he took the hand, stepping back away from her. Removing the bandana from his mouth, he ate in silence, never taking his eyes off of her. She watched him with her black eyes, just as he knew his own kakugan were staining his eyes. As he ate, the hunger that the shock of the last day had hidden asserted itself, and he ate voraciously.

"Who are you?" The woman said as she nibble on one of the men's fingers. "I've never seen you around here, and I've seen most Ghouls in the area. You wouldn't be the Ghoul seen with the Death Head's Demon, would you?"

He stopped eating, eyes narrowing.

"Who is the Death's Head Demon? I heard that name for the first time today."

The woman actually giggled.

"You're definitely that Ghoul." She said, sitting atop a body, her legs splayed revealingly. "Strange you don't know about the Death's Head, though. He popped up here decades ago, caused quite a ruckus when he started appearing in random territories. Rumor has it that he was a visiting American. Sort of like you."

"He was my Father." He didn't know why he was admitting anything to a stranger, but it felt good to speak to someone who didn't admittedly declare him an idiot. "And now he's dead."

"Death is such a horrible state of things," She said, smiling a sad smile, "Well, I seem to have lost my appetite. It was nice meeting you, American, I think we'll see each other again. You should come visit me sometime, here's where you can find me."

She removed a business card, taking a moment to place a bloody kiss on the back. He took it and pocketed it.

"I get lonely sometimes," She said, walking out onto the sidewalk, "So don't take too long."

Then with a wink, she was gone, and he was left alone with a pair of bodies. The strange, strange encounter with the lady Ghoul seemed to dissolve as hunger once again overtook him. Finally, after his hunger was sated, he took the card out of his pocket.

 _Helter Skelter_? He read. _Maybe…_

He began to walk back to the manhole they'd come out of, but found it still standing open, the cover pulled to the side as it had been. Stopping and listening, he thought he could hear _something_ in the distance, but the buildings closed in around him and muffled sound. Even his sense of smell was deadened, since all he could smell was blood from his meal.

He took off at a jog, the way they'd gone, straining his ears to hear anything that'd help him. That help was forthcoming, as he heard a massive crash and found himself having to skip over a body that had just appeared on the ground in front of him.

Skidding to a halt, he turned, and seeing that the body wasn't one of the people he'd been with, went to check on the fallen Ghoul. He wore a bug-eyed mask, making him look some kind of horrific science experiment. When he moved closer, he could see that _he_ was _she_ , and that she was still alive.

Shakily, she stood, looking at him.

"So… hungry." She said, sounding half mad. Her kagune, a massive tail-like appendage that burst from her lower back, swept towards him from the right, but ended up taking out the alley wall to Ace's left when he leapt over it, his own kagune manifesting.

He stabbed and stabbed, until the girl was unmoving. And then using his rinkaku, ripped the helpless Ghoul apart.

The sounds of battle were growing louder, and he soon found himself involved in a wild melee. An ukaku wearing the same bug-eyed mask as the first woman he'd killed fired shards at him, but most shattered harmlessly on his arm-shields. He retaliated with his rinkaku, a pair of the tentacles spiraling through the air towards the offending party. They were blocked by a muscular man, with a massive whale-shaped bikaku, which sent his own tentacles into the ground. Retracting them, he took a moment to look around.

"Hopefully you got enough to eat, idiot," Touka said as she, Renji and Nishiki came up beside him. The others were there as well, forming a circle in the middle of the apparently abandoned street, "Because we have bigger problems than feeding now."

They were surrounded, with dozens and dozens of figures appearing to line the sidewalks and the rooftops.

"This is even worse than we thought." Nishiki said, hand trying to cover a gaping wound in his shoulder that had yet to heal. "Who thought that _Orca_ of all people would have joined the Flyswatters."

"Doesn't matter." Touka replied. "Now it's just a matter of survival."

Ace had his doubts about their chances, as the gang attacked.


	3. Chapter 3

"A large group of Ghouls have been sighted in Toshima! The Quinx Squad is moving out!"

Haise Sasaki looked up as Ginshi slammed open the door, putting down the book he'd been thumbing through and then standing. The rest of the squad were already out, though he, Ginshi and Akira had all been given the day off after having taken on the Death's Head Demon the night previously. It looked like they were about to get busy.

"Alright, I'll get the car," Akira said, as her cellphone began to ring, and messages popped up on all three of theres, "Looks like sixty or so ghouls are having a turf war. They think the Serpent may be involved."

Haise nodded and went to pull on his jacket. Knowing that they'd likely be late to the party.

 _This should be interesting._

* * *

"For the final time, Aogiri Tree would like to offer you a chance to join us."

Ace was beaten and bloodied by the time the offer came from the Ghoul known as Orca, as he personally squared off against Renji and Touka. Ace hadn't been there for the first offer, but now that offer seemed like a good deal.

"Hey, don't lose your concentration, asshole!" Nishiki said as he leapt and twirled away from his numerous attackers.

Blocking a shower of shards from an ukaku with his arm-shields, he stabbed an unlucky Flyswatter with his rinkaku, tearing through the Ghoul's chest, ripping and rending him into a bloody mess.

"Fuck!" Ace screamed, as he saw Touka and Renji attacked Orca out of the corner of his eye. As they moved, at least a dozen Flyswatters leapt down at them from above, kagune moving for a killing shot.

 _Should I use it?_ He thought, even as he'd already lashed out with his rinkaku. Just before striking the group of falling Ghouls, each of them split into half a dozen smaller tentacles, knife-sharp blades on their tip. Moving them all at once taxed him in both mind and body, and he felt his strength drain even as the first tentacle bit into flesh, and passed right through. He proceeded to loop the tentacles through the bodies, even as they struggled against him, knife-bladed tentacle biting into flesh again and again, until they were like overused pincushions.

Then, with a final exertion, the tentacles seemed to take on a saw-like appearance, and withdrew with a blinding speed, ripping through flesh with a noise like several giant zippers. What had been a dozen confident Ghouls, stooping on only two targets, turned into hundreds of lifeless pieces of meat that smacked into the ground followed by gallons and gallons of blood.

"Holy shit." Someone exclaimed from above them, as the battle seemed to pause, "What in the hell was that?"

Ace dropped to one knee, propping himself up with one of his koukaku, waiting for his rinkaku to completely return from their extended state. His breath quickened.

 _How does Mom do that so often?_ He thought, thinking back to the first time his Mother had shown him that technique. And how she'd split her rinkaku into finer and finer tentacles, without even breaking a sweat. _Cause this… sucks._

"Nice job." Nishiki muttered as he came to stand next to him, his bikaku dragging along behind him. "I just wish you'd been able to get more of them."

"Whatever." Was all he could say, as Renji landed nearby, flat on his back. His mask was askew, and blood was steadily pumping from a gash in his chest. Touka landed nearby, luckily still on her feet. Her rabbit mask was missing an ear, and one of her arms hung limp at her side.

"We need to get out of here, quickly." She said, as Orca disappeared in the distance. "Doves are sure to have noticed a disturbance this big."

Even as she spoke, the sound of gunfire erupted behind them, back along their escape route.

"Shit, shit, shit." Touka said under her breath, as Nishiki and one of the Ghouls Ace didn't know grabbed Renji. Seeing a door, Touka perforated it with her ukaku, before kicking the doors in, revealing a dimly lit backroom of some kind of club, "This way!"

Ace had problems keeping up, as his legs felt like jello, but he was able to keep up by using his rinkaku to steady himself. Turning a corner, and following the others through the door, he was suddenly assailed by a massive sound.

 _Did we really just run into a freaking_ club? The idea was ludicrous, hadn't these people heard the battle taking place just outside? Their entire party quickly let their kagune disappear, before any of the massive crowd could see them. Nearly every person in the crowd wore some kind of a mask, whether it be a simple eye covering, or a full faced, most types of mask were on display.

But when he felt and heard the level of noise in the cavernous room, he didn't think it was so incredulous. Touka, taking the lead, gestured for them to spread out and push into the crowd. Apparently in their alcohol and drug fueled partying, these people had dulled their senses to the point that they didn't notice the bloody and bruised Ghouls pushing into their midst.

Taking a moment to look back, he saw the first of the Doves arrive, but quickly averted his eyes as they began to scan the crowd.

"Hey, fancy seeing you here." Someone whispered in his ear. He turned to find the red haired woman standing near him, smiling at him from under a lacy face covering, wearing a new, clean, even more revealing dress.

"Yes, fancy seeing me." He said, taking a moment to nervously look back. The Doves were beginning to push into the crowd, though none of them appeared to have any kind of cinque, only firearms. "Um…"

"Let me help you." Gentle hands pulled off the straps of the helmet, before pulling the bandana down to hand around his neck. He himself pulled the goggles off, letting them drop to the floor. When she saw his face finally revealed, "Well, you are pretty cute."

And then her arms were around him, and the smell of her perfume was stinging his nostrils with its strength. He immediately knew what she was doing, as she pulled him deeper into the crowd, doing so slowly so as to not draw attention to either of them.

"Don't be shy," She said as she rubbed against him, "It's not often that I dance with Ghouls. You better take advantage of it while I'm helping you."

He did his best, but he knew his effort was lackluster. As they moved, they nearly bumped into a lone figure standing in a small space in the crowd. He wore a tall collar that covered the bottom of his face. Ace felt the man's eyes lingering on him, but the woman surprised even him by leaning in and pressing her lips against his own, a passionate, warm kiss.

 _What is it with this woman?_ He thought, feeling her tongue on his own. _Is she just horny twenty-four seven?_

But the kiss seemed to make the Dove uncomfortable, because he turned and stalked back into the crowd. Even when he was gone, the woman didn't break the kiss until he pushed her away.

"What? Haven't you ever kissed a _real_ woman before?" She asked, feigning offense while bursting into a fit of giggles. She reached out and touched his face, eyes flashing with what Ace could only guess was the same look a cat gave a mouse before it pounced, "I'm _very_ interested in you, Mr. American Ghoul."

"My name is…" He nearly said his real name, but decided against it. "Ace."

"And I'm Itori." She said, stepping away from him. The increased distance meant that she had raise her voice over the music, as her arm went up, and she snapped her fingers. "Why don't we go get acquainted someplace a little more comfortable?"

A woman let out a shrill shriek somewhere further into the crowd, and Ace could see a fountain of blood leap into the air.

"My friends have already gotten yours out," She said, taking him by the hand. "So don't worry about it."

When the crowd surged away from the murder, they moved with it, escaping out of a sidedoor.

* * *

"Well, look who the cat dragged in."

Ace stumbled back into the café just as the sun reached its zenith the next day, feeling like he'd been beaten by a dozen heavy pipes. The others were all in various parts of the store, though they all came out to give him reproaching looks.

"Itori called last night and told us she had you," Touka remarked, looking at him intently, polishing one of several spoons lying in front of her, "We're all lucky she and her friends were there to help." She put the spoon down. "Now, we want some information about you. We all saw what you did last night with your rinkaku. That isn't something a low class Ghoul could do."

"Who are you, and where did you learn that technique?"

He immediately felt the need to run, to hide. But he fought it.

"I am… Probationary Agent Aeneas Lincoln." He said, speaking to the entire room, but holding Touka's gaze. "I am a member of the Federal Bureau of Ghoul Investigations. I'm a Ghoul Hunter."

If it had been any other time of day then high noon, with throngs of people out and about enjoying their Sunday afternoon, he thought he'd likely have been attacked for saying that. But the others simply stared at him, wide eyed.

"But… But you're a Ghoul!" One of the unknown men who'd been with them last night, stood up abruptly, knocking his chair back. The trio of hooded figures sitting with him stayed seated, though they seemed to twitch nervously. "Why would anyone let a Ghoul hunt other Ghouls?"

"Because that is what the United States government believes." He replied mildly. "Other than a few allies, we are aware of the horrible treatment of Ghouls in other nations by the CCG. But we don't allow those butchers anywhere within our borders. And who better to hunt Ghouls than another Ghoul? My Dad and Mom are both Senior Agents, though my Dad was just about to retire."

He sighed as the memory of his Dad's death hit him full force for the first time since that first night.

"What the hell, that's the craziest thing I've ever heard," The man said, "Why haven't we ever heard of that?"

"Because the CCG censors any kind of information about America and its Ghouls in the countries they're in charge of." Ace responded. "And America doesn't push the issue, because we don't want a massive influx of Ghoul refugees trying to migrate. We barely have enough Agents as it is."

"So, let us get this straight," Touka said from behind the bar, "You're a Ghoul, and a Ghoul Hunter. And you're also the son of the Death's Head Demon. What else could possibly be wrong with you?"

All he could do in response was shrug.

"My Mom was stationed here in Japan years ago," He began, trying to reach back to the stories his parents used to tell him, "As a guard for the American ambassador. Gosh, what was her nickname back then… Guillotine?"

Noone in the room reacted except the man with the weird beard who was still standing, who seemed to goggle at him.

"You mean the Red Guillotine is…" He said, "I remember her, sort of. She popped up when I was a kid. Took over a small feeding ground, and proceeded to cannibalize dozens of local Ghouls." An idea seemed to light his eyes up. "Does that mean _both_ your parents are kakuja?"

"Yep." He said flippantly. "Most senior Agents in the FBGI are full kakuja."

"And I'm the Queen of England." Nishiki remarked, gazing at him with his lips quirked in an incredulous frown. "You're full of shit."

"Whatever you say, Your Majesty."

Someone snickered, Ace thought it was Renji, and the tension that had been building in the room seemed to dissipate in a heartbeat.

"Well, we've had stranger friends, haven't we?" Nishiki said, rubbing his temples, and heading towards the door, "I've got stuff to take care of, so, see you all tomorrow."

When he was gone, Touka began to put the polished silverware away. Noticing him still standing there, she stopped and glared at him.

"Are you a cannibal?"

Ace nodded.

"It's how we generally feed. When we hunt a Ghoul, we generally eat whatever's left. Hunting regular people is forbidden except in certain cases."

Touka gave him a disgusted look, and then disappeared into the backroom, while Ace himself went up the stairs and took a badly needed shower. When he came back downstairs, Renji was waiting for him.

"Come with me."

"Where are we going?"

He ignored Ace's question and went out the back, to a small silver car. Touka was already seated in the front seat, so Ace squeezed into the tiny backseat. When Renji got in and started driving, Ace's curiosity only grew.

"Are you planning on killing me and dumping my body in the countryside?" He said jokingly.

Renji looked up sharply at him in the mirror, but it was Touka who spoke.

"We're running errands, and you're getting a mask."

"A mask? Like the ones you all wear?"

Touka nodded.

"If you're going to work with us, then you need to have one." She gazed out the window, eyes following a large, glass fronted building as they drove past it. "It just… makes things easier."

They arrived at the grocery store where they apparently purchased their goods, and he excused himself to goto the bathroom. Going to a payphone that was by the bathroom, he paid with the tiny bit of money he had left. Following the directions to make an international call, he called the phone at his parent's house. When it went to voice mail, he wasn't surprised. His Mom was out on duty. He left her a short message detailing what had happened, but leaving out any details that could be picked up on.

He could only hope she'd be home sometime soon, but doubted it. She'd been down in Florida when they'd left, hunting leads on the Ghoul terrorist group that kept popping up.

"You know you could've just used one of our phones at the store." He turned around, slamming the receiver back onto its hook as Touka appeared.

"Sorry, I just didn't want to hassle you…"

"Dumb answer."

"Why are you such a…" He snapped angrily, before stopping himself. "I mean…"

"I know what you mean, and if you were me, you'd be the same."

She went into the woman's restroom, and Ace went and found Renji and gave him a hand loading the groceries. When Touka finally came out, he noticed a change about her, an air of sadness. Renji and Ace were already in the car, waiting as she walked towards them.

"She lost someone a few years ago," Renji said under his breath, "Someone very dear to her."

"Killed by the CCG?" Ace guessed.

"No. Stolen by the CCG."

And then Touka was in the car, and they were driving someplace else, music playing softly from radio.

* * *

"Was it really necessary to go so far with the American?"

"Just because you aren't interested in me, Nico," Itori said from her barstool, "Doesn't mean other people can't be. I have needs as well!"

The other Ghouls in the room laughed.

"In the end, it only advances our plans, anyways." Itori continued, swirling the blood in her wineglass around and around, "If we can keep control of him, we may be able to break apart Touka's group. And that would be absolutely _delicious_. Roma, have you been able to get close to Eyepatch? Maybe slip him some information?"

The other young woman sat draped on the bar, arm thrown over her face.

"It's already done. He has the girl's home address." She said, laughing. "I can't wait to see the pain that their memories cause each other…"

Itori laughed with her, thinking of all the fun she'd have with her new toy, before throwing him away. She'd have to talk to Uta about the kids mask.

 _In the end, I'll have the last laugh._

* * *

 ** _Thanks for reading! Don't be afraid to leave a review!_**


	4. Chapter 4

"Uta, we're here!"

Touka announced their arrival into the tiny backalley shop. Ace had been confused as they drove into progressively worse looking parts of town, the graffiti beginning to cover some walls nearly in their entirety. Renji had even stayed behind to watch the car. But the shop seemed to be decent enough once they got in the doors.

 _HySy ArtMask Studio. What a strange name_.

"Hmm, he's changed the place quite a bit since I was here last," Touka said, almost to herself, as she surveyed the walls at all the interesting, creepy and grotesque masks all about them. "Uta, honestly, are you here?"

Someone walked out from behind a privacy screen. Average height with black hair styled into an undercut. And _covered_ in tattoos, revealed by the loose tank top he wore. At first, Ace thought his kakugun were activated, but then he noticed that his irises were not red.

 _Super strange_.

"Let me guess, you need a mask for the American boy over there?" Uta said, taking a seat at his workstation. Touka approached, but Ace hung back a bit. Uta looked up at him, face neutral. "You've caused quite a stir. You should be more careful."

Ace took Uta's words in silence, standing silently. Uta looked at him, and gestured for him to come nearer.

"Well, come here."

And for nearly an hour, Uta touched and prodded his face, and took measurements. All the while keeping up a steady stream of conversation with Touka.

"Itoria was right, he really isn't very talkative," Uta said once, "Honestly, he doesn't even seem American. Where is the boisterousness, the bravado?"

"He's kind of an asshole," Touka responded, "But you know what Yoshimura always said."

Ace nearly said something, but decided to just sit and listen.

"Yes, the Old Man always was pretty helpful." He put away the tool he had and stood. "Well, come back tomorrow and I should have his done. It won't take too much work, I think I have a spare blank that'll fit him somewhere around here."

And so they left, taking the car back to :Re, another silent ride with the same silent music. Renji parked the car, and the three of them carried the supplies into the storage room.

"So…" Ace began, when the three of them had finished. "What do we do for fun?"

"Nothing." Touka said, voice dripping with sarcasm, as Renji just walked away and headed back out to his car. "Why don't you call Itori? She'd probably _entertain_ you."

"Good idea. But, I don't have a phone." He responded mildly, pulling the card Itori had given him, then gestured towards the phone behind the counter, "May I use the store phone?"

Touka just turned and walked away, stopping by the rear door and turning her head to look at him.

"If you want us to keep helping you," Her kakugan flared to life, seeming to glow, "You _better_ be here ready to work tomorrow."

"Got it." He replied, fighting the need to flash his own kakugan in challenge. Ace instead adopted his usual strategy, and turned on the politeness, "Have a nice rest of your day."

Touka just snorted, heading out the back door, as Renji came back in, took one look at Ace trying to figure out the phone, and went upstairs. Looking at the phone, he immediately felt a sense of apprehension.

 _Who still uses a rotary dial?_ He thought, trying to figure out how the damned thing worked.

"Hello, is this Helter Skelter?" He said, hopefully, "Oh, sorry, I think I have the wrong number."

It took him four tries to get the right number. In response to his question, he heard the man who'd answered call for Itori.

"Hey, Itori, it's Ace."

"I thought you'd be calling sooner than later," She said, laughing.

"Are you doing anything tonight?" He asked.

"Unfortunately, I am," She said, almost sadly, "I have to run the bar. But I have some business tomorrow that you could tag along on, if you'd like."

"Sure, I'd enjoy seeing some more of the city." He said immediately, letting his excitement grow. "What time, and where, would you like to meet?"

"I'll meet you at :Re, around 8. Is that okay? Make sure you have a mask of some kind."

He agreed, wished her a good day, and then hung up the phone.

 _What am I going to do until tomorrow?_ He thought, dreading sitting around and doing nothing. _I could go out hunting… Or not, I don't know this area well enough. And I don't want to cause any more trouble for Touka and her group._

Seeing a bookshelf, he went over and grabbed the novel with the most interesting artwork, and pulled a chair out. Opening it, he began to attempt to make his way through the Japanese writing.

When the store opened the next day, Ace did his best to work as hard as he could, trying to keep up with the dishes. He nearly succeeded until the lunch rush, when he fell behind and got scolded by Touka. Nishiki showed up soon after, late, and he was forced to help Ace catch up.

"Where have you been?" Ace asked quietly.

"I had to help someone get out of town." Was all he said in response, and then they worked in silence.

When things slowed down around 5, Touka finally let Ace leave to go get his mask.

It took Ace a half hour to walk the barely remembered path to HySy, getting lost several times, but he finally made it. When he opened the front door, a veritable wall of Ghoul smell hit him.

"Had a lot of customers today?" Ace asked Uta, who was busy working at his table.

"Yes, quite a few." Was Uta's response. He gestured to a cloth covered mask on one of the tables near him. "Try the mask on, I'll check the fit."

Ace pulled the cloth off the mask, and stopped in amazement, studying the grotesque combination of a medieval knight's helmet and a snarling dogs head lying before him. When Ace put it on, he found that he could hear and see nearly as easily as if it weren't on his head.

"I know lots of people like you," Uta said as he started checking the fit of Ace's mask, "Outwardly, you seem alright. But inside, you've got a black heart. Tell me I'm wrong."

"Isn't that how most Ghouls are?" Ace said in response, looking at the maskmaker squarely in the eye, his kakugan appearing, "We are _Homo comodenti_ , the 'Man Eaters'. Anyone who eats people will eventually grow cold and apart, unless they find something to bring them together."

"And what is that?" Uta asked, cocking his head to let one black eye look up at him.

"Beats me. That's like asking a Human what the meaning of life is." Was all Ace could say in response. "Now, how do I pay you?"

Uta waved him away.

"Touka paid for it." He said, turning back to the mask on his table. "Just do me a favor, and protect Itori tonight when you goto dinner. Things can get a little crazy when"

 _Dinner_? Ace thought to himself as he walked back to :Re, his new mask folded in a bag.

Showered and dressed, mask safely tucked away in a back pocket, Ace waited outside the restaurant. A half hour late, Itori pulled up in a fancy looking Mercedes.

"Where'd you get this?" Ace asked as he climbed into the passenger side, looking at Itori, who smiled back at him.

"Let's just say that the woman who owned it before won't be needing it for a while."

Satisfied by that answer, he buckled up as Itori pulled back into traffic, heading west. When they got onto one of the raised highways leading out of Tokyo, he looked at her.

"Where are we going?"

"An old acquaintance of mine is holding a banquet at his home on Mt. Dodaira," She said, looking at him sweetly, "I don't know a lot of people there, so it'll be nice to have _someone_ I know there."

"It's no problem," Ace said, "I'm just happy to be out of the restaurant. I feel very out of place there, and it seems that Renji and Touka don't like me very much."

Itori giggled, shifting the gears of the Mercedes like a racecar driver as she accelerated onto the ramp towards Mt. Dodaira.

"Renji is always like that," She said, looking like she was sorting through a huge number of memories, "But Touka… Well, she lost someone dear to her."

Ace nodded.

"Yea, that's what Renji told me, but he didn't elaborate."

And so, over the course of the hour long car ride, she told him everything. He learned about Kaneki, the One-Eyed Ghoul, the former coffee house Anteiku, and all that had happened a few years ago. And how the CCG had somehow twisted Kaneki into this Sasaki fellow.

"And, did you ever think about where Touka goes at night?" Itori asked after finishing telling him about the CCG's raid on Anteiku.

"Well, she has an apartment, doesn't she?" Ace hadn't really thought about it. "Does she have a social life? Friends outside :Re?"

Itori nodded.

"She does, but she also spends hours every night following Sasaki around," She said quietly, "And follows him around as well."

"That's either the cutest thing I've ever heard, or the creepiest." Was Ace's response, making Itori snort laughter. "Do you think she had a thing for this Sasaki guy?"

They reached their exit, and Itori smoothly pulled off.

"I think so," She said, "I'm pretty sure that _he_ had a thing for _her_."

Itori turned the Mercedes onto a dirt path at the base of the mountain, and proceeded to drive through the lightly wooded areas that straddled Mt. Dodaira, up the mountain.

"Ah, so… Gosh," He rubbed his temples, "This is confusing. What did I get myself into?"

"You got yourself into lots of fun, now, let's put our masks on." She smiled at him, slipping a simple masquerade mask over her face, as Ace slipped his more ornate one on. Pulling up to a gate manned by a single woman, Itori put the car in park and rolled down the window. "Hello, we're here for the Banquet."

She handed the statuesque woman, clearly a Ghoul by her scent, an invitation. The gate guard bent down, looking into the car at Ace and scanning the back seats.

"Will your guest be needing any special accommodations?" She asked.

"No, he will be joining me."

"Excellent, Madam." The guard seemed satisfied, and stepped back, pointing through the now open gates. "Please proceed up the path, other servants will be there to attend you. _Bon appétit_."

And so they arrived at the illustrious, sprawling mansion, and were ushered up the marble staircase by one servant, as another servant took their car and pulled it into an underground garage. Ace was completely stunned, and felt immediately under dressed, having just his slacks and a blue dress shirt. Especially when he looked at how beautiful Itori looked in her slim fitting black dress.

"Would you like a dining jacket, _Monsieur_?" A thin, male man in a different jacket appeared in the foyer, bowing. At Ace's nod, the servant snapped his fingers, and another servant carried a fashionably tailored jacket out of a side door. Slipping it on, he found that it fit his tall, muscular figure quite well. Far better than his own jacket would have fit.

"Thank you, sir."

"You are most welcome." The servant said, dipping his head. "Now, dinner has nearly arrived in the ballroom, so if you would please follow me…"

He swept his arm towards the set of ornate glass doors, and Itori put her arm through his and let him take the lead.

The room they entered was cavernous, and set up almost like a theater, with rows and rows of dining booths centered on a lowered circular area. It was a coliseum.

 _Ah, a Ghoul Restaurant._ He finally understood. _They would never allow these back home._

He'd only read about them in books, as a Ghoul eating an unsanctioned human was against the law, and strictly enforced.

 _Unless you can get away with it._ A memory flashed, but he squashed it down.

"Ah," A bright voice said behind them, " _Mon cher_ , it is so fine to see you again."

A man with a strange mask in the shape of a smiling crescent moon stepped towards them. He matched the mask with an eccentric green suit, contrasting with the florescent yellow tie around his neck.

"Hello, Gourmet," Itori said, extending a hand, which the Gourmet promptly kissed, "I am so glad that you are hosting these events once more. You always had such a flair for them."

"I did, didn't I?" He said, grinning, eyes drifting to look at Ace. "Now that I have something to live for again, I find it quite trifling to simply sit and wait. So I decided to host a few banquets here at my hunting lodge. Mostly out of town Ghouls, though, not many of our old friends," He was openly staring at Ace now, "My, my, _Mon cher_ , I don't believe I've ever seen one of your guests make it past the second set of doors. And what a _fine_ specimen you've brought this time."

"This is Ace," She introduced him, "He is a new associate of Kaneki's old group."

The man froze at the mention of that name, eyes widening slightly and beginning to turn black.

"It's, uh, a pleasure to meet you." Ace said hesitantly, stopping his hand halfway on its way to reach for a handshake.

The Gourmet's eyes returned to normal, and he finally broke his gaze from Ace.

"Well, I hope you enjoy your meal," He said, bowing to them, "And the event I have planned for the grand finale."

And with a flourish of his hands, he walked off towards another group of newly arrived Ghouls.

"That guy is weird." He remarked to Itori quietly when another servant had seated them opposite one another in the front row. "Like… Really weird."

They passed the time idly with chitchat, talking about the Ghouls that were still filtering in. Some of them took notice of Itori and Ace, but kept to themselves.

Itori shushed him, as the lights dimmed slightly, and several figures appeared from a door under their feet rushing out into the central pit doing acrobatic tricks. They wore clown masks, and wore a wide variety of clothing. Across the pit, the Gourmet appeared, smiling and sweeping his arms at his guest.

"Welcome, my friends," He began, and his voice was amplified by speakers placed around the room. The clowns in the pit traipsed and danced, one of them spinning cartwheels around the center of the pit. "To my return performance!"

"And to mark that return, there will be a special treat at the end of the show!" He clapped his hands, "Now, let us begin the festivities with our first course!"

The Gourmet's waiters began to filter into the room carrying covered silver trays.

"The first course will be salted Priest, served in a blood gravy," The waiter who brought their meal said, placing the plates in front of them, "Please enjoy."

Another waiter arrived before either could begin to lift their forks, carrying a wine bottle filled with a thick looking red liquid.

"Would you like some refreshments, sir, madam?" Itori smiled and held her glass up to be filled, as did Ace after a moment's hesitation. "This is a Marie Tsubaki, aged 13 years."

Curious, Ace took a sip, and was delighted by the taste. It was as if someone had found the ambrosia of the Greek Gods and bottled it, like drinking candy.

"What was this aged in?" He asked innocently, not prepared for the response.

"It was aged in a little girl, Sir." The waiter said, as if Ace had asked a stupid question, before turning and marching off to the next table.

Ace nearly dropped the glass, but simply sat it down. Itori took a gulp, and then rested her head in her hand, swirling the wine in front of her.

"You don't like it?" She said, looking at him with hooded eyes.

"It's delicious, but…" He said, looking at the blood. Nervously licking his lips, he picked the glass up again.

 _I don't want to look like some kind of dolt in front of her…_

"But…?" Itori asked after taking another sip.

He took a hesitant sip, and that seemed to satisfy Itori. She looked at the clowns continuing their acrobatics, and then turned and began to eat the salted Priest. Ace joined her, and soon found himself drinking and conversing with her. The second course, Mailman's ribs in a tangy bloodsauce, arrived, along with Ace's third glass of wine.

 _I better stop drinking or…_

He looked up as Itori finished her fourth glass, and she looked up at him with slightly reddened cheeks. Then he felt her foot, in a stocking but without the high-heeled shoe she'd been wearing, begin to creep up his thigh.

Fighting to control himself, he looked up sharply as their waiter approached the table.

"Is everything okay?" He asked, seeming to notice the sweat touching Ace's brow. "Was the meal substandard in some way?"

Ace had to keep his hands on the table, as he turned to the waiter.

"Everything has been excellent so far," Ace said through nearly clenched teeth, not making eye contact with the waiter, as Itori cruelly pinched him in all the right places, "My compliments to the chef."

The waiter bowed away, and Itori let up her assault.

"What was…?" He began, not angry, but slightly embarrassed.

"That's just a _taste_ of what you're going to get," She said, leaning forward and revealing more of her cleavage, "If tonight keeps going as good as it has. But… I want some _excitement_."

He was just about to list a few exiting things they could do, when the lights went off throughout the room, throwing them into complete darkness.

"My friends," The Gourmet said from his little pulpit, "I truly hope you have enjoyed your meal, but tonight's special has just arrived from Tokyo. A tasty little morsel that my associates captured in the 24th Ward."

The clowns stopped their traipsing, arrayed throughout the sunken arena, as more figures appeared from underneath. Two figures dragged a third to the center of the arena. Turning her around to face the crowd, a gasp ran around the room.

 _A half-ghoul!_

Even Itori looked on in shock as her two captors pulled back her tattered black hood, revealing pale skin, black hair and a single kakugan in her left eye. Her eyes twitched wildly, as she screamed.

"Nashiro? Nashiro?" She yelled, shrilly, "Please, help me find my sister. _Nashiro_?"

"As you can see, she has gone hopelessly insane," The Gourmet spoke over her continuing screams, "And now, I wish to issue a challenge to you, my guests."

The heavy chains that bound the girl were released, the girl springing away from her captors towards the audience, her kagune appearing.

"Defeat the one-eyed ghoul, so that we may feast on this delicacy!"

Ace looked at Itori, and then stood, stepped up onto the short rail that separated their deck from the pit below, and jumped.

 _I hope this is exciting enough for you_ , _Itori!_

* * *

 **Hope you all enjoy!**


	5. Chapter 5

Ace landed on the arena's floor with a slight bending of his knees, hands in his pockets. The One-Eyed Ghoul sprang towards him, her rinkaku tentacles spiraling in towards Ace's heart.

His koukaku appeared from below his shoulders, wrapping around his arms like a pair of shining silver shields, and he batted the wild attack away. The One-Eye landed within feet of Ace, attacking him with feet and fist and teeth, her rinkaku whipping in at him from all directions. He stepped away from each attack, backing towards the arena's wall. When his back brushed it, he ducked, as a rinkaku tentacle buried itself where his head would have been. He rolled under her feet, kicking her face first into the wall.

" _Give me my sister back!"_ The girl screamed, redoubling her attack as she spun. _"Where is she?"_

Ace took a hit, as one of the tentacles scraped part of his left cheek off, revealing a bit of bone, but he bit back against the pain, drawing the girl towards the middle of the arena, dodging wildly. He reformed his right-handed koukaku into a blade on the fly, backflipping through the air, stabbing at the One-Eye. He missed, but as she darted to the side, he caught her with a backhanded strike from his left shieldhand, sending her tumbling like a ragdoll to land in a pile a dozen meters away.

The crowd of high-class Ghouls clapped, a polite noise. Ace turned and looked towards Itori, and saw her clapping with them. His momentary glance nearly cost him his head, as the One-Eye lurched upwards, and launched herself towards him with inhuman strength. He heard her leap, and turned with his own inhuman reflexes, gasping as a tentacle tore through his shoulder, wriggling and tearing through bone and muscle alike.

Ace flailed his right arm, trying to catch her with his blade, but she leapt, and caught him in the face with a ferocious jump kick.

Itori stood as she saw Ace get slammed into the wall of the arena, and watched in shock as he collapsed onto his hands and knees. Her eyes narrowed, and her face took on a note of disdain.

"What a weakling…" She whispered to herself, then stopped as she saw Ace push himself to his feet. "Ah…"

Ace watched the One-Eye come out him again, waited until she was committed to this last strike. Then his rinkaku, appeared, and stabbed through her body.

 _Pierce._

 _Stitch_. Ace thought, remembering his Mom's lessons, as he began to weave his rinkaku through the One-Eyes body. A dozen times, he threaded his rinkaku in and out, in and out, again and again. He heard the girl call for her sister once more, voice weak and fading.

 _Rip._

He was suddenly awash with blood, and heard the polite clapping once again. His rinkaku and koukaku disappeared, as the Gourmet stepped up to his pulpit once again.

" _Magnifique_!" He said, clapping loudly, as Ace warily watched the troupe of clowns come barreling towards him. "Absolutely stunning! What a thrilling conclusion!"

Ace watched as the clowns began to pick up the meat strew across the floor, throwing it to the two men who'd dragged the One-Eye out. A small, slim female with red hair wearing a cartoonish rabbit with a star around the left eye, cartwheeled near him, holding the severed head of the girl in her mouth.

"To the victor goes the spoils." She said, holding it up. Ace looked into the wide, frightened eyes, and suddenly lost his appetite.

"Keep it," He said, heading back towards his table, "I've lost my appetite."

The girl watched him, mouth quirking down into a frown once his back was turned. Then she three the head into the air, produced a handful of small rubber balls, and began to juggle them.

A waiter offered him a hand as he climbed up the stairs, but he waved it away. He did use the towel, his waiter offered him at the table.

"That was quite interesting," Itori said once the show had moved on, "So you're a Chimera, eh?"

Ace nodded, wiping at the still bleeding wound in his shoulder.

" _Monsieur,_ " Their waiter came up a moment later, "My master has offered you the use of one of our guest rooms to freshen up. If you would follow me?"

The waiter led him back into the foyer, and then up the winding staircase into one of the mansions wings. He was led into a fancy room, with a great canopied bed and lush, bloodred carpet.

"A change of clothes have been provided, they're laid out on the dresser." The waiter murmured, before closing the door behind him.

He went into the bathroom, which was nearly as large as the bedroom, and removed his mask. Looking in the mirror, he saw how haggard he looked. He splashed his face with cold water, before removing his suit jacket, and undershirt. The wound had finally stopped bleeding, but his undershirt was officially ruined.

Then he heard the room door open again, and glanced out to see Itori. He didn't even turn, just kept watching her through the mirrors reflection. She stopped at the threshold, watching him, kakugan turning her sclera black and pupil a deep, deep red.

"What?" He said, when they'd stood looking at each for several minutes.

"I'd like to talk to you." She said, approaching. "About a proposition I have for you."

Ace turned towards her, his own kakugan appearing. He watched her expectantly.

"I need a… friend," She began, stepping close, and putting her arms around his neck, "Who could help me with a few things."

"What kind of things?" Ace asked, fighting his body's compulsion to lean in.

"Certain Ghouls that need to be… Eliminated."

He pushed her away, a sad look on his face. She looked hurt, even pouty as he did.

"I cannot," Ace looked at her, "Because it breaks my code…"

He caught her savage slap, a hit that likely would have decapitated a regular Human.

"Screw your code," She said, visibly angry, "Don't you want me? I'll do whatever you want!"

Ace turned away. After a moment, Itori left, in a hurry, slamming the door behind her.

 _Damn._

* * *

Ace arrived back at :Re early the next morning, just as the skies opened up and it began to rain, thankful that the Gourmet had offered one of his servants to drive him back to the city, and had even given him a 'goodie' bag. The sun had not yet risen, and so the store wasn't quite open yet.

He just took a seat next to the door, leaned his head back and closed his eyes. Waiting for Renji or Touka.

Touka kicked water directly into his face, and he slowly opened his eyes, having already known she was there. Ace gave her a hateful glance, kakugan already on.

"You better put those away," She said, unlocking the stores back door, "Before I pluck them out."

"I'd like to see you try." Ace spat at her, unmoving and suddenly irrationally angry.

Touka just went inside, and left him outside, not saying another word. After a few minutes, he stood, and walked inside, ignoring Renji and Nishiki's looks as he walked up to his tiny, tiny room. Calming himself, he put on his uniform, and went downstairs, ready to work.

* * *

A week passed with nothing majorly strange happening. Ace would get up at dawn, work until close, and then drop into his bed. He barely spoke to anyone, other than to say hello or goodbye. Touka even paid him for his time, and he simply stuffed it into his pocket and went upstairs that night.

Then the phone rang late, and Ace shuffled downstairs to answer it, thinking it could be Itori. A series of tones sounded, and then a tune played. He immediately recognized it, his Mom must have finally heard his message. And gotten word to the Agency.

"Aeneas Lincoln." Ace responded into the following silence, then said his FBGI ID number, "10423."

Another tone sounded, and a mechanical voice spoke.

"Authenticate, Alpha-Victor-Two," It responded with another code.

"Sierra-Nine." He responded instantly with the code for, " _I'm fine. Not under duress_ ", instead of Delta-Three, which he would have used if someone was holding him hostage.

"Authentication accepted. Line is secured. Transferring."

He waited for several minutes in the dark restaurant, periodically looking towards the stairs for Renji to come walking down.

"Probationary Agent Lincoln," A deep male voice, Agent Control, finally spoke, "Are you safe?"

"Yes, Control."

"Are you in the company of Senior Agent Garth Abraham Lincoln?"

"No."

"Is he KIA? Can you confirm?"

Ace hesitated, taking a deep breath.

"Cannot confirm, but likelihood is beyond parity."

The voice on the other end paused, and he thought he heard a conversing of voices in the background.

"Stand by for orders." The voice said, and the sound of shuffling papers filled the receiver. "You are to report to Agent Jackson at the US Embassy in Tokyo by 5 PM today. Equipment and papers will be provided to you."

Confusion took hold. He'd expected them to extract him.

"Control, I need clarification," Ace said, "Am I extracted?"

"Negative." Control said, "The Agency wants to maintain you as an asset on the ground in Tokyo. Events are liquid at the moment."

He began to ask for further clarification, but the line cut off. Hanging the phone up, he turned to find Renji staring at him.

 _Events are liquid_. Ace repeated in his mind. That meant something big was going down back in the states.

"Are you leaving?" Renji asked.

"No…"

The silver-haired man grunted in response, going to the kitchen and returning with all the supplies to make coffee, along with two cups.

"If you're staying," Renji said, "You need to learn."

And so he watched, and learned, as Renji went through the steps of making coffee. Ace's first attempt was disastrous, and resulted in Renji dumping the entire pot out after the first sip. Then Renji did it again, and passed the second cup to Ace as he sat down opposite him.

"This is good." He said, looking down at the coffee.

"You need to be careful around Itori," Renji suddenly said, "She isn't what she seems."

"I know," Ace said, "She tried to get me to… _take care_ of some people for her."

Renji nodded.

"When we were friends, she asked me the same question." Renji said.

"And?" Ace asked.

"I said yes." An almost sad looked came across his face, and Ace looked away. "And I spent several years killing for her."

"When did you stop?"

"When I met Yoshimura," Renji said, "And he helped me see that I was just being used."

Ace nodded slowly.

By this time, the sun had risen, and Touka came in through the backdoor. Ace was already busily helping Renji set up the restaurant.

"I need some time off today," Ace asked Touka after finishing setting all the chairs and tables up, "I've got to goto the Embassy."

"Why?" She asked, seeming annoyed.

"My… Other employers called this morning," He said, careful of what he said as the first customers were already seated, "They'd like me to stay in town for… awhile."

"Well, then they can provide you a room, can't they?" Touka said, looking at him with contempt. "Cause we may need to use that room."

She agreed to let him go when Nishiki came in, and so he found himself, just before the allotted timeslot closed, stepping up to the gate guards on duty. He'd slipped back into his training, taking several superfluous turns to check that he was being followed, and only when satisfied of this did he take the turn that would lead him to the Embassy.

"Whaddya want?" The Sergeant in charge of the door said, thick accent making him hardly understandable, hand moving to his pistol.

"I'm here to report to an Agent Jackson," Ace replied, keeping his hand well away from his pockets. "I have a 5 o'clock appointment."

"Where's your ID?" The grizzled Sergeant growled at him, white eyebrows coming together in consternation. "Noone gets in here without an ID."

The phone in the little guard shack rang, and the man inside picked it up after the first ring. The Sergeant kept staring at Ace, even as Ace watched the man nod twice, and then looked at the Sergeant.

"He's good to go, Sarge."

They let him through, Sarge escorting him to the door, where another guard took over the duty. They loaded into an elevator, which took them up to the top floor. He was ushered into a meeting room, like the kind that would be used at a high level business. He took a seat about halfway down the table, and waited.

Ace didn't have to wait long, as the door opened, and a pair of people entered, a very tall tanned woman leading the way with a non-descript looking bag slung across one shoulder. The small pudgy form behind her waddled in, the man taking a moment to straighten his thick, walrus-like mustache.

"Probationary Agent Lincoln?" The woman said, extending a hand across the table. "I'm Agent Jackson, a pleasure to meet you. I've always thought highly of your parents, and was shocked at the loss of your father. My prayers are with you."

"Thank you, Ma'am." Ace said, extending his hand to the pudgy man. "And you must be Ambassador Chavez."

"Ah, you already know me." The man said, shaking Ace's hand a little longer than was socially polite. "It's not many people that know me."

Ace hadn't heard of him, but had simply seen his photo on the wall as he walked into the Embassy. He just smiled politely, and waited for Agent Jackson to move on.

"Well, gentlemen," Agent Jackson interrupted, "I believe it is time to get down to business." They all took their seats, Ace sitting across from the two Embassy staff. Jackson took out a small recorder, placing it on the table between them, "This will count as your official debrief, and will be a matter of the Agency's records."

"Now, please start from the beginning."

And so Ace began, and rambled through his debriefing in a little under an hour. Giving them exact locations on just about everything, though he did leave out the content of his relationship with Itori, to save him some embarrassment.

"Alright, I think that about concludes the debriefing portion," She said, "Now we can move onto your briefing."

"I was given to understand that things are a little liquid back home," Ace asked, leaning back into his chair, "What's going on?"

"The terrorist organization V is what's going on," Jackson responded a little heatedly, "They seem to have doubled the number of attacks this year. Somehow snuck a few bombs into Disney World and took down the castle. Couple hundred dead."

"Damn." Was all he could say in response.

V, the only name that organization was known by, was a worldwide organization that even the FBGI knew nearly nothing about. All they knew was that they had something to do with Ghoul-Human relations, and they seemed to hate America, attacking on a nearly monthly basis. To think that they'd doubled their attacks was…

 _Bad._

"Yep," Jackson said, "And now they've decided to give you the task of seeking out V in Japan."

" _What_?" Ace said, leaning forward with wide eyes, "They want _me_ to find V in Japan? Are they even here? Where should I start?"

Jackson shrugged.

"Not in my paygrade," She said, then switched to a chiding tone as she continued, "And it's not in yours either, _Agent_ Lincoln."

"Oh, great, they're promoting me so I can go die."

The Ambassador chortled a laugh.

"Son, I won't claim to admit I have any idea what you Ghouls fear," He paused, smiling, "But I know I'd be pissing myself if I had to deal with V."

"Mr. Ambassador," Jackson's tone immediately stopped the Ambassadors coughing laughter, "May we have a moment, Sir?"

"Of course, my dear." He said, heaving himself out of his chair. "Good luck, Agent Lincoln. Stop by if you ever want to share a beer!"

When they were alone, Jackson used her thumbs to roughly massage her temples, closing her eyes to take a moment to think.

"There are times I wish I could eat him," She said jokingly. She opened her eyes, revealing her kakugan, "But I wouldn't want all the cholesterol." At Ace's serious look, she got back down to business, "Listen, I know this is going to be dangerous, but the Agency has your back. Whatever you need, the Agency will provide."

"Anything?" He brightened slightly.

"To an extent." The senior agent said. "Now, what do you need?"

"First off, I need a steady supply of money," He began, "I never got a chance to exchange it, and the CCG took most of my stuff. So I've been living on a thread. So, money, and a place to live."

"You can't keep living at the coffee shop?" At the vigorous shaking of his head, she just moved on, "The Agency will get you someplace, paid for from the Fund. What Ward?"

"Somewhere near Nerima, if you can," Ace replied, racking his brain for other things he would need for this mission, "I plan to keep working at the coffee shop. Do you have a new ID for me?"

"Already done, and we have a safehouse near Nerima that you can use," She pulled the bag that had been next to her feet up, unzipping it and beginning to pull several items out, naming each as she placed it on the table in front of him, "Your new Agency ID, with your current rank, a Japanese ID card, a work Visa, cell phone, a bottle of Hunger-a-Ways," Those were of particular interest to Ace, as hunger had already began to gnaw at him in the last few days, "A service pistol, M1911," Even a Ghoul Agent could find uses for a pistol, especially if they fired bullets coated in harvested kagune, "Holster for said pistol. And a charge card that matches your Japanese ID, connected to an offshore account that can't be traced back to the Agency. Please, _please_ use it frugally."

He knew that quite a bit of work had gone into forging all these documents, and slicing them into the official Japanese records. But he had another question.

"What are we going to do about the Doves?" Ace said, "They killed my father, and I know they're looking for me right now."

Agent Jackson smiled evilly, face seeming to contort into a mask.

"We're planning on speaking to them on your case," Her voice could have frozen the air, "And we won't forget about what they did to your father. If they squawk too much, or go after you, the Ambassador is going to come down hard on them. He's at least good for that."

Ace nodded. Taking a moment to begin placing his new equipment on his person, carefully fitting the loaded pistol into a holster in the small of his back, before festooning his body with the new IDs, and documents that would let him live in Tokyo.

"Now, you'll be expected to report in at least once a week by phone," She said, holding the cellphone up before he could grab it, "And at least once a month, here, in person. My number is listed under your contacts as Angel, so call me if anything comes up."

He bid her goodbye, grasping the keys to the safehouse a few blocks from the restaurant. After the ruins of the night before, he felt hopeful about the days to come.

Ace whistled softly as he walked past the Sergeant, heading back for the rest of his shift at :Re.

* * *

 **Hope you enjoyed!**


	6. Chapter 6

Sasaki Haise moved across the rooftops like a wraith, having slipped from his bedroom in the silent hours just after midnight. Leaping between them, he made his way towards the block of apartments that the anonymous email had spoken of.

 _The Ghoul who lives in Apartment 302 knew Kaneki._ The email had said, and included a slightly hazy picture of a blue-haired young woman, very beautiful, who was sitting on the balcony that attached to the apartment. He thought he recognized her, but he couldn't quite place her. _You should pay her a visit._

Sasaki didn't often open strange emails, but his eye had been drawn to the lack of a header in his mail log. And now, without telling anyone, not even Arima or Akira, he was going to investigate his past.

 _I'm going to get yelled at by Mom and Dad, when they find out_. He stopped on the rooftop opposite his target, and pulled the blueprints he'd gotten off the internet of the apartment building. Finding Room 302, he figured out which of the balconies he'd have to get too.

Pulling on his mask, Sasaki took the leap, aiming not for 302, but for the apartment above. His fingers tightened on the extended deck, and he dropped down onto the lowers apartments railing with barely a sound.

Quietly, he checked the door handle, and found it unlocked.

Sasaki found the room beyond nearly unfurnished, with a bed, a bedside table and a desk being the only furniture in the room. He immediately felt strange snooping through a woman's home, as he slowly walked around the bed, which was neatly made, and ran a finger along the desk.

 _No dust._ Sasaki thought, his eyes narrowing. _Someone cleaned recently. Very recently._

Then his eyes found the picture on the desk, and his jaw dropped. He grabbed it, eyes going wide.

 _Comeon, Brother, take the picture with us!_ He remembered a young girl's voice calling to him. _Please, even Sister agreed!_

"It's not nice to snoop."

Sasaki whirled, finding the blue-haired girl.

 _Touka._ He thought, a rush of images hitting him.

"Touka."

* * *

"Mr. Ambassador, I really must ask why you have asked me here today?"

Yoshitoki Washuu, Bureau Director of CCG's Main Office, looked at the rotund little man seated across from him at one of the US Embassy's fine dining tables. To the Ambassador's left sat a tall, tanned woman in a stylish blue pantsuit, introduced as the Ambassador's assistant, Miss Jackson, while to Yoshitoki's left set Associate Special Class Akira Mado, his escort for the day, who wore a more traditional style dress.

He'd received this invitation to a dinner expecting it to be some kind of Gala affair that the American's were so fond of throwing, but had instead found himself the only guest. They'd eaten in a fine camaraderie, other than the assistant, who had remained silent throughout the meal.

"I apologize for bringing you here under the guise of a Gala," The Ambassador said, holding up his glass of wine and seeming to admire its clarity of color, "But there are word that must be said."

"And threats that must be made." Ambassador Chavez dropped the glass slightly, blue eyes that seemed to have been carved from ice. "We know you engaged in battle with one of the FBGI's top agents. In clear violation of the treaty between our two nations."

Yoshitoki felt Associate Special Class Akira tense beside him, hand moving towards her attaché case, but then saw her freeze, hand still several inches away.

"Ambassador Chavez, you know the CCG is an international organization, and is not subject to Japanese laws, or treaties." Yoshitoki responded, locking eyes with Chavez, "As per the Ghoul Exclusion Clauses of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, any Ghoul that sets foot on territory administered by the CCG is a fair target."

"Oh, pish-posh," The Ambassador seemed to wave away Yoshitoki's legal gobbledygook, "You know that is garbage as well as I do, Director. The UN is a train wreck, and has _no_ administrative powers in _any_ territory. You are a separate organization from the, anyways."

And the Ambassador _would_ know that. Generally, the CCG could get away with almost anything, up to and including assassinating public officials, in any almost any country. There were a few holdouts, such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Australia, who along with parts of South America allowed _no_ CCG agents or business into the country.

"You know we take a hard line about you harassing any of our citizens," Chavez continued, "But what are we to do when you _murder_ not only one of your citizens, but one of our respected senior officials?" He sat back, interlacing his fingers across his broad belly. "Please, tell me what I should do?"

"Ambassador Chavez," Yoshitoki said coldly, "You seem to be under a false impression. We did _not_ murder one of your precious Ghoul citizens."

"Then why do I have a grieving wife and mother begging me to find her husband and son? Are you claiming you didn't make the attempt?"

 _Ah. So they do know about the younger Ghoul._

"Oh, we did, Mr. Ambassador," He responded, "But we did not succeed in killing your agent, the Death's Head Demon. He drove off our assault and escaped. But upon our attempt to track him, his trail disappeared quite suddenly."

"And the son?" The Ambassador asked.

"He escaped," Yoshitoki said, "And we do not know where he is. Do you?"

"We haven't had any contact."

"Then he has likely been cannibalized." Yoshitoki said. "How unfortunate. Now, thank you for the dinner, and most interesting conversation, but I really must be going."

As they were escorted from the Embassy, Chavez rudely not showing them the way, Akira leaned in close.

"His assistant was a Ghoul." She said in a bare whisper.

"How do you know?"

"Because her kagune was wrapped around my right feet for most of the dinner."

* * *

Ace awoke with a start, well before dawn. He'd decided to stay the night at :Re until he could get the safehouse properly furnished, and make it look like he was actually moving in. He heard voices downstairs, and immediately and quietly stood, hand reaching for the pistol he'd hidden under the mattress.

"What do you _mean_ Kaneki is back?" He heard Nishiki growl. "You and I both know…"

"Damn it," He heard Touka say, "I found him in my apartment. He… He said my name and then…"

Ace came down the stairs, pistol hidden. Touka looked haggard, and makeup had run down her face, as if she'd been crying. Renji and Nishiki heard him, and looked up, but Touka just hung her head, eyes closed.

"What happened?" He said, "And what can I do to help?"

And so, Ace heard it all, as Renji and Nishiki extracted the story from a reluctant Touka. It seemed that this Kaneki had gone mad, and was on a rampage somewhere in the city.

"We need to track him down," Renji said, "Before he hurts too many people. If we can restrain him, then maybe we can keep him imprisoned…"

"No! He's our friend, Renji!" Touka said, almost begging, "We need to _save_ him!"

"I'll call Uta and the others," Renji seemed to just ignore her, "He's gone down into the 24th, so we need to block as many exits as possible. Did his Kakuja manifest? Did the Centipede show itself?"

Touka nodded. Ace watched her closely, seeing the fear cross her face.

"I have someone I can call, who may be able to help," Ace said, pulling out his cellphone and stepping out the backdoor. After a few moments of conversation, and Agent Jacksons agreement to keep her eyes, nose and ears open, he stepped back in.

"Ace, could you stay with Touka?" Renji asked, holding his mask in one hand. "Nishiki and I are going to scout the area around Touka's apartment. Please watch over her."

And so he found himself alone in the restaurant, well before sunrise, with Touka.

"Would you, like some coffee?" He asked, softly, trying to be kind.

She didn't respond, even when he placed the cup of steaming coffee in front of her. Ace sat down near her, periodically looking at her, but he was at a loss as to what he should do. Speaking to woman, especially emotionally prickly woman like Touka.

"We need to start searching," She suddenly said, knocking her chair over in her rush towards the storage room, Ace was right behind her, snatching her wrist, "Let _go_ of me! I need to help Kaneki!"

"Renji said…"

She kicked him hard in the stomach, and rushed into the room, toppling stacks of boxes to get to an area of floor that Ace hadn't yet seen. Then she pulled open the secret door and dropped down.

"Damn…" He murmured, dropping down after her, pulling his mask out of his pocket. He could only hope Touka had the presence of mind to keep hers on her person. The area was lit by a dim light, but it provided all the light Ace needed to see, as he activated his kakugan and charged after Touka. The tunnel they ran down seemed to be an old service tunnel, and widened into a larger tunnel only a few hundred meters down, that tunnel traveling on for at least a few kilometers. Ace had to stop and take in the massive underground _hall_ that he ran in to _,_ fifty meters high and several hundred long, where he finally caught up to the much fleeter of foot woman, "Comeon, we need to…"

Ace stopped talking as he noticed the other figures watching them. At least two dozen Ghouls were sitting around an improvised campfire in a garbage can.

"Mama, I'm hungry," A stick-thin little boy spoke, his kakugan appearing, "Can we eat them Mama?"

"Yes," One of the woman near him spoke, eyes wild with hunger, "I think we can…"

" _Who are you?"_

The voice seemed to come from everywhere, echoing off the walls. And the sound of skittering feet, like a… like a centipede running over glass seemed to grow larger.

 _"Touka is… mine!"_

"Of course the madman finds us first." Ace said to himself, seeing the shadowy figure drop from the ceiling. "Of course, how great for us."

Skinny Ghouls scattered as Kaneki landed among them, and Ace finally got a good look at his kakuja. He didn't like what he saw, as the things single eye stared out at him.

"Touka," He grabbed her by the shoulder and pulled her towards the tunnel they'd come out of. She brushed his hand off, "Hey, goddamnit!"

Kaneki hit him before he even had a chance to turn. He heard a sickening crunch and she slammed into the wall.

" _She is all_ mine! _"_ The deranged creature roared, grabbing Touka in his arms. " _Mine, mine, mine, mine, mine!_ "

Touka cradled Kaneki's head in her hands, looking up into the glaring pair of eyes. She recoiled at the madness in them, but his arms tightened.

" _Love me."_ She heard Kaneki say, " _I did it all for you! Please, please love me?"_

And that was when she knew she couldn't save him, at least not the way she had hoped. Poor Kaneki had suffered far, far too much, been broken too many times. And now he'd likely just killed that fool of an American.

"Kaneki," She whispered, hoping that that boy that had once befriend her was still in there, "I do love you. But you… need to get better."

He placed a kiss on his exposed cheek, and then made her move. Her kagune flared to life, and she was able to tear herself away from his grasp.

" _Why?"_ He said, taking a step back, " _Whywhywhywhwywhywhywhy! I'll fix the world for you! I'll kill everything bad! So you can be happy!"_

Kaneki's voice echoed throughout the chamber, his cries seeming to spring from every direction, assaulting her. One of his tails whipped in, smacking her with far less force than he could have applied.

" _Love me!"_ Kaneki ordered.

"Not like this, Kaneki." She said, tears flowing. "Not like this."

And for a moment, the mad Ghoul paused, watching her. Then Kaneki's eyes seemed to flicker with something… other, and for a moment, Kaneki spoke without the madness.

"Please… Help me." The kakuja shuddered, and then the madness returned.

Renji, Nishiki and Banjou leapt down from above, having come through one of the many crisscrossing tunnels. Landing near her, they seemed ready.

"No, Kaneki!" She pleaded, as he reared for the attack. "Don't, they're your friends!"

He swatted her aside, and impaled both Renji and Banjou without a second's hesitation, before sweeping Nishiki aside with contemptuous ease. They fought back, but… Against a kakuja like Kaneki…

Touka fell to her knees, knowing that Kaneki would kill everyone she cared for. All of the people she'd worked so hard to form a bond with. She loved Kaneki, but…

She would have to kill him, to save the others. As she stood, and prepared to attack, a voice spoke from behind her.

"Fucking white-haired freak." Looking behind her, she saw Ace standing again, his dual kagune whipping about him. His eyes were wide open, the red veins of his kakugan spreading farther across his face then she had seen before, " _That fucking hurt!_ "

When she saw his eyes, she saw the same madness that possessed Kaneki.

 _Oh, god. He's a half-kakuja._ She thought, horrified, seeing his koukaku seem to spread up and down his torso and arms, forming a set of shining silver armor. However, she felt the need to vomit as his rinkaku extended above him, splitting into hundreds of tiny tentacles that speared into his own limps and extremities. She was close enough that she could see them burrowing through his flesh, watching his body jerk and shudder, while Ace screamed in agony. When it was done, his rinkaku had seemingly integrated with his muscles, as blood seeped from his wounds.

" _I hate pain!"_ The newly formed half-kakuja roared. " _Kill!_ "

It was horrific, and Touka even felt herself pitying the dumb American, even as his terrifying form leapt into battle with Kaneki. Nishiki was standing over Renji, while Banjou was just barely sitting up.

"What in the fuck is that?" Banjou yelled, as the two half-kakuja smashed at each other.

"It's Ace," She said, "He…"

"Holy _shit_."

Touka watched as Ace grasped one of Kaneki's two tentacles and used it to bludgeon him against the wall, using strength that was as far above a regular ghoul as a Ghoul was above a human. Then with a wrenching twist, he tore the entire limb from Kaneki's back, and began to beat him with it. Kaneki countered with a slashing from the remaining rinkaku limb, but it glanced off the koukaku covering Ace's chest.

"His rinkaku burrowed into his body," Touka explained, quickly checking on Renji, "I.. Think they're enhancing his strength."

The battle moved down a floor, as Kankeki slammed Ace directly through the concrete. Touka was reluctant to follow the two berserk Ghouls, but finally dropped down below, unsure of what she'd find.

Kaneki lay in a pile, alone on the platform. Ace had clearly fed off of him, large chunks of his arms and legs missing chunks. But…

He was alive. She fell next to him, seeing his face, his real face, not his kakuja mask. She stroked it, and then put her ear to his chest. His heart was beating. She wept happy tears.

"T- Touka." Kaneki spoke, eyes opening a crack. " _So… beautiful."_

And then his eyes closed, and his breathing slowed.

"Banjou, Nishiki! Help me!" Touka screamed, and the two dropped down through the hole.

Another scream drew her attention away from Kaneki and the others, and she froze in horror. Ace, or the creature that had once been Ace, was devouring one of the Ghouls from earlier. The poor old man cried out, but his cry ended in a muffled snap as Ace twisted his head, decapitating him. The half-kakuja feasted as Touka watched, killed a dozen of the Ghouls.

The mother and child who had confronted them when they first entered the huge cavern attempted to flee down one of the tunnels, but Ace pursued them.

"Help us, Oh god, _no_ -"

The call for help cut off with the same suddenness as the old man's had.

"Comeon, Touka, we need to go." Nishiki grabbed her shoulder, shaking her lightly as Banjou lifted Kaneki in his arms. "We don't want him to come back at us."

Touka nodded.

They made their way back to the restaurant, listening to the screams behind them slowly grow quieter as the distance grew. None of them spoke as they lay Kaneki on one of the beds upstairs, while Renji sat against the wall next to him. Touka didn't want to leave his side, but…

"Banjou, we need to go back down there." She said, "We need to try to stop Ace."

"No way," He said, putting his hands up, "You saw what that freakin' monster did to Kaneki, and Kaneki is stronger than any of us!"

Touka had a theory about why Ace had so handily defeated Kaneki, since she'd seen Kaneki fight far harder than he had below.

"Fine, then, I'll go alone."

Once again she dropped into their little trap door into the 24th. She reached the cavernous area where they'd first encountered Kaneki.

A scream from the mouth of one of the dark tunnels drew her attention, and she sprinted into the pitch blackness following the hollow noise. Touka suddenly noticed that the ground was wet, and nearly tripped over several somethings. Looking down, she noticed that she was standing in a puddle of blood that was a dozen meters across. Several adult bodies were scattered around, though most were torn to shreds.

Another cavern, smaller than the first, opened up before her, the sounds of a battle, and she nearly ran into a tall, no, a _giant_ figure who seemed to materialize in front of her. He was clothed in a ragged hooded cloak, and towered at least a foot and a half above Touka. Held in his left hand was a staff made out of a metal-like material.

"Go no further." The giant rumbled, pushing her back when she tried to rush past with a three fingered hand. "I will bring him to you. He's weakening as we speak. Please, wait here."

Touka didn't know why, but she listened to him, knowing she could have rushed past the huge and ungainly figure easily. She just stood by as the Giant took a running leap, and jumped from their little balcony of concrete, an ukaku forming one more hole in the ragged piece of cloth.

Ace roared, first in anger, and then in pain. The entire cavern seemed to shake as something impacted one of the huge cylindrical supports, and then a portion of the balcony opposite her caved in. The sounds of an impressive struggle, and then a horrible popping and crackling sounded, like someone simultaneously popping and ripping bubble wrap.

After a few moments, the huge man reappeared, holding a bloody Ace, without his kakuja armor, in his arms. He placed him on the ground near her, never revealing any part of the face under the hood. Touka's mouth worked, as if she were going to ask a question, but the giant held up his deformed hand.

"I'll visit your shop someday soon," He grumbled, "But not today."

And then he was gone. Ace began coughing, and she went to stand over him. Blood poured from his mouth, nostrils and eyes, as well as leaking from the hundreds of small incisions all across his body. She dropped to one knee, as the coughing turned into a gurgling wheeze.

Whatever Touka didn't like about the American didn't stop her from helping him, as she rolled him up on his side, and he began to cough blood. But the gurgling stopped.

"You need to get him someplace warm," A voice said from behind her, "He's going into shock."

Itori and Uta stepped out of the shadows, both wearing masks that Touka knew were not their own. Uta helped her lift the unconscious Ace between them, and helped carry him back to the shop, where with a recently healed Renji and Banjou, they laid him on the storerooms floor.

"All we can do, now," Itori said, a hint of sadness touching her, "Is wait for him to heal, or die."


	7. Chapter 7

Ace awoke slowly, and in a great amount of pain.

He didn't know where he was, and tried to lift his body from its lying position. His body immediately rebelled, and he flopped back down onto whatever he was laying on. Forcing his eyes open, he looked about him, and realized he was back in the little bedroom at the top of the stairs.

 _Why did that have to happen?_ Ace thought, bringing his hand up to touch his face as he tried to remember what had happened. He could only bring blurry memories to mind as he searched for them. _What's wrong with me?_

Forcing himself to stand, he cracked open the door, and then lost his strength, collapsing to his knees. This transformation into a half-kakuja had been far worse than the last time. Everything seemed a little hazy as he moved, and his muscles felt violated. But at least he didn't feel hungry.

 _I'm turning into a fucking binge eater_. Ace thought, regaining his strength for a moment, even as he felt the need to vomit. He felt like he'd gone out for a nights drinking.

Stumbling down the stairs, he found the store closed even though there was daylight out the front windows. The clock said ten-thirty, so they must have closed the store for the day. Checking the trap door, he found it sealed, but the back door was ajar.

"I've got to go rescue her," He heard Kaneki's voice say, "She's like my little sister. And anyways, if they figure out I'm Kaneki again, they'll kill her." Shuffling closer, Ace leaned against the door frame, straining to hear, "The two personalities inside me may have merged, but I need to keep be Sasaki for a while longer. Goodbye."

He heard boots walking across the ground. Ace stepped out into the bright daylight, covering his eyes as it overwhelmed him. He saw Touka standing alone, wiping her eyes.

"W-what-" Ace could barely speak, his voice rough, throat dry. Touka jumped, turning to look at him, face still wet with tears. She didn't look furious as he thought she would have been.

"Renji and I decided to close for the day." Touka said. "With most of us injured in some way…"

"I'm so sorry," Ace said, hanging his head, "I… I can't control myself. I'm too full of hate."

Touka looked at him with a soft gaze, likely for the first time in the few weeks they'd known one another.

"What do you hate?" She stunned him with her simple question.

"I hate myself." Ace replied, voice barely a whisper. "I hate everything about myself."

He turned away from her as hot tears boiled down his cheeks. Then memories swarmed his mind, and a flood of words escaped his tortured throat, as he recounted why he hated himself.

Ace had grown up in Washington, D.C, as did most of the children of FBGI agents. When he was 7, he'd made his first real friend, a human girl named Jessica Dempsey. Her parents had been wary of letting their little girl play with a Ghoul, but he had been charming, and his parents had been well respected.

They should have followed their gut instinct.

One day, while playing, Jessica had grown frustrated with him, and hit him with a broom. Before he'd known what he was doing, his kagune had sliced his first, and last, real friend into tiny bits of meat. In her living room. With her parents watching.

Her parents had died the same way, as her father tried to attack his daughter's killer, and her mother tried to run for the phone. Unable to stop himself, he ended up feeding off of them for several horrors before forcing himself to stop. He'd been horrified by what he'd done, and had called the police. Only his parent's connections had kept him from being taken by the Department of Child Services, and the entire affair had been hushed up by the FBGI so as to not tarnish his parent's names.

Instead, they'd enrolled him in the FBGI's academy, and he'd grown up there for most of his preteen and early teen years, since his parents were gone for long stretches of time.

He'd gone on his first mission at 17, down to northern Mexico. At the behest of the Mexican government, a team had been sent down to deal with a group of Ghoul druglords. When they'd finally found them, Ace had lost control, and ended up cannibalizing several of them, their families, as well as a few innocent bystanders. It was then that he'd lost control and turned into a half-kakuja, destroying a large portion of the village that the druglords had been hiding in. That was why he'd graduated a year late, aged 19, as the Agency had pushed for him to take more training then was generally needed.

"I remember it all." Ace said, running his hands through his dark hair. "And I hate myself for it."

When Touka reached out to pat him on the shoulder, he flinched away from her.

"I'll… I'll be out of the restaurant by the end of the day." Ace said, turning to go back into the store. "The Agency found me a place to live. So I won't bother you anymore…"

"Ace," He stopped as Touka said his name, "You don't bother us. And you don't bother me. I'm sorry I've been such a… Bitch to you." Ace turned to look at her, "You did something for me that I don't think I can ever repay."

"You brought the man I love back to me."

"I only did that because I was trying to kill him…"

"It doesn't matter, you did what you did, and now I've gotten what I wanted for the last three years back."

Touka smiled at him, face moist with tears. Ace smiled back, though his was more placid, tinted by the horror and sadness still coursing through his mind.

"Touka, I need to go inspect my apartment, would you like to come with me? I don't think I want to be left alone with these thoughts right now."

* * *

They walked the dozen blocks to the address he'd written down. It was a thin, two story townhouse, in an alright part of the city. Unlocking the door, he found the bottom floor to contain the living room, a small kitchen, and a bathroom.

"This is actually a nice place," Touka observed, scrunching her nose at the dusty furniture, "You just have a lot of cleaning to do."

Ace nodded in acknowledgement, heading up the stairs up to the second story. Two small bedrooms and a shared bathroom made up that floor. No beds, which was unfortunate.

"I guess I need to go shopping." He said, rubbing the back of his head, trying to make a list in his head. "Cleaning supplies, a bed, food…"

He tacked on several other things, as well, as they walked to a nearby store. Touka was a fount of information about what he needed, since never in his life had Ace technically lived alone. He'd either lived in a dorm, or with his parents.

Ace really didn't know what to make of this change in Touka, and expected her to start referring to him as the dumb American, or moron, or idiot. But she only called him Ace.

 _Have I made a new friend?_ He thought to himself as they left the store, most of the things he'd need in a dozen bags. _Maybe this time will be different…_

After negotiating for a pair of beds at a furniture store, he and Touka moved them into the apartment. Rolling up his sleeves, he set to work with a duster and cleaning agent.

"Ace, could I ask you a favor?" Touka said from where she was cleaning out the refrigerator. "We may need to hide someone…"

"Absolutely." He responded instantly. "Anything I can do to help, I'll do."

As the day drew to a close, he wished Touka a goodnight, and laid on the couch downstairs, some crummy Japanese show playing on the small TV against the wall.

"Did I really find someplace that I belong?" He said to the ceiling, "How am I going to screw it up this time?"

* * *

Summer turned into autumn, and autumn turned into a snowy winter. :Re experienced a huge upturn in business as temperatures plummeted, an upturn that required them to bring in Banjou to begin helping out, while Ace was promoted to helping with customers as Nishiki came to work less and less. Ace had even seen Itori once or twice more, though they weren't as friendly as they'd been.

Ace also found out that Touka had been seeing Kaneki, even though it was highly dangerous. Kaneki had apparently been unable to free Hinami, though she was apparently still being kept in Cochlea, the Ghoul Detention Center. Her time seemed to be running out though.

"I just got word that they're going to begin moving several of the Ghoul's," Kaneki said one day near close, as he sat drinking a cup of coffee, "Three days from now. It looks like they're moving them to another Detention center to the south."

Touka pursed her lips as Ace and Renji stood by cleaning tables.

"Then we need to move now," She said, "Before they get away."

Kaneki shook his head, looking warmly at her.

"We don't have the strength," He said, "And anyways, I want to stay with the CCG as long as I can. So you have to hit the truck carrying her."

"We need to hit a couple of the trucks, at least," Ace interjected, "To draw attention away from our true objective. A couple of distractions will draw off a sizable number of investigators."

Kaneki looked up at him.

"Does that mean you're volunteering, Mr. Hellhound?"

"Hellhound?" Ace asked. "Who's that?"

Kaneki put his cup down, leaning back in his chair.

"That's the nickname the CCG assigned you, after what happened in the 24th," Kaneki, frowning slightly, "They interrogated a group of Ghoul's who'd heard rumors of what happened, and that's what they called you."

Ace ground his teeth for a minute, then shrugged.

"I guess I can provide a pretty good distraction." And went back to cleaning. "Just get us the truck routes, and mark this girls truck, and we'll be good."

The preparations began that very night, as Ace picked up several packages from Agent Jackson, promising not to do _too_ much damage with them. When asked what he was doing, he explained that the girl had information on Aogiri Tree, an organization that opposed V. Maybe Ace could get some information from her.

Ace then stole a car, and began placing a few of his little surprises throughout the car. The day of the move came around quickly, and they all waited for Kaneki to get the information on routes to them.

Touka's cell phone buzzed, and she pulled it out, quickly checking. Several texts from Kaneki had come in at once, containing crudely drawn maps in his hand writing, and a message that he was going to be helping escort one of the trucks. Nine trucks would be going out on different routes

"Well, I'll attack Number 4 and Number 5," Naming one that took a looping route away from Hinami's, which was number 9 "If these times are right… Then wait a few moments while they send a response team towards those two. Get in, kill the guards, and snatch her. Then get out."

Touka and the others agreed, and they set out from the restaurant. Already wearing his mask, he got into his stolen car, and drove it to a deserted warehousing area along the route of Number 4, parking it against the sidewalk. Then he got out, pulled his hood up to partially hide his mask, and removed his remaining special packages, and made for a tall building several blocks away, giving him a clear line of sight right down one part of Number 5's route.

Ace called Touka, who was with Renji, Nishiki and the others.

"I'm in position. Wait for the boom."

An hour passed after he hung up, and time seemed to slow as the clock counted down. Ace whittled the time away getting his position ready, assembling the massive rifle that had been the largest package he'd received from Agent Jackson, and preparing his escape apparatus. When he heard the rumbling of a diesel engine coming down the road, he peeked over the edge, confident that the cold darkness of midnight would conceal him.

The big truck, Number 5, turned the corner onto the street that dead ended into the base of Ace's perch, and his phone beeped with a message from a random number. It was gibberish, but Ace knew exactly what it meant.

He pressed 1, and sent that text message back to the number.

Back in the car he'd stolen, the sensor that had detected truck Number 4 received the message, and sent a signal to the detonator mounted next to it. Just as the cab of the truck passed the seemingly abandoned car, nearly a hundred pounds of C4 high explosive he'd put in the trunk detonated. The explosion sent a large cloud of smoke into the air, as well as parts of the now destroyed Ghoul transport truck.

But Ace was concentrating in on his task, the rifle snugged up into his shoulder, right eye again the rubber ring around the scope. Centering the scope on the front windshield directly in front of the driver, he caressed the trigger.

The rifle bucked against his shoulder, but he barely budged, and he quickly caressed the trigger again, when the first bullet only caused the windshield to spiderweb. The second bullet shattered it, and the big truck slewed to the right, smashing into a wall. The other investigator in the passenger seat jumped from the cab, trying to get to the safety of one of the warehouses on either side. He didn't make it, as Ace put a bullet through his torso.

 _Well, it's a good thing I paid attention at the shooting range._ He thought, slinging the rifle across his back and heading for the side of the building. He'd left the rope coiled there, but now through it over the side, nearly a hundred feet of it. Grasping it tightly, he lowered himself over the edge, and slid down to the ground. _I should probably see who's in the truck, just to be safe._

Unslinging the rifle, he made his way from cover to cover down the road towards the wrecked truck. He made sure the driver and passenger were dead, then walked along the side of the jackknifed trailer, listening for anything inside. The rear was locked with a complicated mechanism, but he took care of it with a flick of his koukaku, covering the widening gap of the doors with the rifle. A dozen men and several women were inside, hands bound, though only two woman and a man were conscious. None of the occupants were Hinami. Both of the women were lookers, though. One blond, and one with pink hair.

When he turned to leave, the blonde woman yelled after him.

"Hey, asshole, let us out!" When he kept walking, she changed her tune. "Please?"

Ace turned and looked back. Maybe they could be useful, he stepped up into the truck, koukaku cutting through their shackles with ease. Then he stepped out of the trailer, getting ready to head back towards :Re.

"So, you must be Hellhound." The woman said from behind him. "We've been hoping to find you for _months_."

Ace didn't know what it was about the woman's tone, but the hairs on his neck and arms stood on end, and he whirled around to find the three people he'd freed beginning to surround him.

"I'm Associate Special Class Investigator Akira Mado," She pulled out a short Quinque from behind her back, holding it loosely at her side, while gesturing to her two associates, "These are my associates, First Class Hairu Ihei, and First Class Hidenori Tateshimi. Now, why don't you make things easy, and surrender."

 _Oh, great, a trap. Awesome work, Ace._ He thought sarcastically to himself.

"Well, a pleasure to meet you," Ace said to himself, wanting to pummel himself for his stupidity. He brought the rifle up and fired from the hip, hammering out the last eight rounds in the magazine at the man. One of his rounds hit the man in the arm, the limb falling a way as the bullet tore away a huge chunk of it. "But I have better places to be."

The two woman moved as if they were synchronized to the same clock, coming at him from left and right. He dropped the rifle, not needing it anymore, and assured that there would be no way to trace it back to the Agency or himself, and somersaulted backwards, feeling Ihei's sword type Quinque whisper past his nose.

He blocked both their next attacks with his Koukaku, his rinkaku suddenly spearing out of his back at Investigator Mado.

" _You._ " She hissed through clenched teeth, as his rinkaku left a cut across her weapon arm. She retreated slightly, switching her weapon to her other hand, "You're the _son_."

Ace smiled, showing his teeth through the mask.

"Once again, a pleasure to meet you. But I really have more important things to be doing."

Ace turned to run, and was nearly impaled on Ihei's blade as she attacked from above, but he redirected it with his left hands koukaku, while his right hand when behind his back. His pistol came out of its holster smoothly, and Ihei had no time to move, having landed awkwardly.

He shot her twice in the stomach, then sent her tumbling away with a swipe from his rinkaku. Mado made a strangled noise of range, but leapt back as he fired a shot in her direction.

"Good night, ladies." He turned and ran down the street, aware of the sirens screaming towards him. Opening a manhole on a back alley, he dropped below and made his way underground towards :Re. None of the Ghouls he encountered bothered him, they just slinked away into the darkness at the sight of him.

Climbing out of a manhole several blocks away from :Re, he took off the outer layer of his clothes and stuffed them into a garbage can, pocketing his mask before walking out onto the street.

Ace only hoped that Touka's group had done better than he had.


	8. Chapter 8

Touka dragged herself along the ground, blood spurting from her shattered legs.

The trap that the CCG had sprung on them had taken them completely by surprise. Her group had stopped the truck, and gotten Hinami out. But when they released the other Ghouls with her, they'd turned out to be CCG Investigators. High-ranking Investigators.

Renji, Nishiki and she had attacked, as Banjou and his trio of henchman spirited Hinami unwillingly away. But they were outnumbered three-to-one, and she had been injured very early when a Quinque taken one of her legs, and broke the bones of the other.

The CCG was hemming them in, Nishiki and Renji steadily losing their energy.

"Well, at least we got Hinami out." Touka said to herself, as she saw several investigators fall like ragdolls.

A figure wearing a black rabbit mask appeared in between two investigators, slicing both in half with his kagune. Dodging several counterstrikes from the two dead men's comrades, he leapt to her side, looking down in disgust at her.

"Stupid sister…" Ayato, her brother, said, "Get the hell out of here."

Renji grabbed her, carrying her over his shoulder as they fled, allowing her to watch as Ayato was overwhelmed by the remaining Investigators. Their Quinque stabbing and stabbing as they surrounded him.

* * *

Banjou stepped through the backdoor of :Re, and found himself staring down the barrel of Ace's pistol.

"Hey, hey," He said, "It's us!"

Ace dropped his arm, and looked over the battered looking foursome. Fivesome, as the most beautiful woman Ace had ever seen stepped from around Banjou's back. His jaw actually dropped as he took her in, and marveled at how alive and sweet her eyes seemed to be.

"Mr. Banjou, we need to go back!" The young girl, who he finally recognized as Hinami Fueguchi, seemed very insistent. "I can help them! I've gotten stronger Mr. Banjou, even stronger than you!"

She didn't even look in his direction as he holstered his pistol. Banjou had to grab her to keep her from running past him, and she collapsed into the big man's embrace.

"Banjou, what happened? Where are the others?"

And so Banjou told him, as quickly as he could. Before the story was over, Ace was out the door, leaping from wall to wall up the alleyway until he reached the rooftops, and then sprinted in the general direction he remembered from Kaneki's map, leaping across entire streets in his panicked rush.

He found them on a rooftop, resting against a raised stairwell, having smelled the blood gushing from Touka's legs.

"What's going on? Are you okay?" He asked, leaning down over Touka.

The sound of sirens grew near, as a number of emergency vehicles passed by. It seemed that Ace's little explosive surprise had been set off next to a fuel depot, and a fire was slowly spreading towards it.

"…Fine." Touka was able to get out between clenched teeth, as Renji tied an improvised tourniquet around the stump of her leg, "We need to… get under cover for a while." She looked up at Ace, "Take Hinami to your apartment, and don't come into work tomorrow. We'll call you when things calm down."

"I'm not leaving you guy's out-"

Renji cut off his protest, looking up at him seriously.

"Go, Ace."

And so Ace raced back to :Re, feeling completely useless.

"Banjou, what's the fastest way to get to my apartment through the 24th?" He asked when he got back, finding the sole female of Banjou's three followers comforting Hinami.

"Are Sister and the others okay?" Hinami asked when she saw him. When Ace ignored her, waiting for Banjou to answer, she seemed to grow furious. "Hey, I asked you a question."

"They're fine, just trying to reattach Touka's leg," Ace said, barely looking at her, "Now, Banjou, _how do I get to my apartment through the 24_ _th_ _?_ "

Banjou finally told him, and Ace explained what Touka had asked him to do. Hinami immediately shook her head.

"No way! I'm waiting for Sister!"

"Miss Hinami," Ace said, taking a step towards her, "Please… I wouldn't-"

The back door opened again, and Renji and Touka tumbled in.

"Sister!" Hinami yelled, running to the older woman's side. "Are you okay?"

"Hinami?" Touka said, looking at Ace, "Why are you still here? Hurry up and go with Ace! I don't know if they followed us! _Go!_ "

And so Ace found himself creeping through the 24th, with the most beautiful woman he'd ever met, trying to follow Banjou's rushed directions. Several times they took a turn, and found themselves at a dead end.

"Damnit, why didn't Kaneki warn us about the trap?" Ace muttered to himself as they lay against a wall for a moments break. "What in the hell happened…"

"Kaneki?" Hinami asked, leaning forward to look at him, "What do you mean? Did Kaneki have something to do with this?"

Ace didn't want to tell her, but relented, giving her an abridged bit. He described how Kaneki Ken and Sasaki Haise had become one when he saw Touka, and then turned into Centipede. He sort of glazed over why he turned into a half-kakuja, and skipped over to the part about their plan to rescue her.

They wandered the 24th for several hours, before Ace finally decided, after some derisive comments from Hinami about his sense of direction, that they'd just take the next ladder upwards.

"Here's one," She called to him from further down the tunnel, "It looks like it's a manhole!"

Ace gently pushed the manhole cover up, legs wrapped around the rusty ladder, and slowly looked around. They were in a back alley, and he recognized the lighted sign of the 24 Hour Convenience shop down the street from his home. Pulling Hinami up, once he'd climbed out, they rushed down the street to his apartment, as he clumsily fumbled for his key.

"For once, I wish _something_ would go right," Ace bemoaned, flopping onto his couch, as Hinami stood, an annoyed look on her face, "What?"

"You really live in this junk heap?" She asked, gesturing towards the peeling paint on the walls, and the ragged furniture and appliances.

"What, do you live in a palace?" Ace replied, adding before he could stop himself, "Should I refer to you as _Princess_ from now on?"

"God, why did Touka send me with an asshole like you?" She said loudly, before her stomach made a noise loud enough for Ace to hear across the room, "Do you have any food? Or do I need to go hunting?"

Ace stood, going to a small cupboard where he'd made some modifications to the floor. By pushing a small latch on the wall, the floor popped up, and revealed a small refrigerator. Pulling one of the small parcels from it, he tossed it to Hinami.

"Hunting is out of the question," Ace responded, "At least for you. If we have too… Then I'll go out."

"Who made _you_ boss?" Hinami said, putting her hands on her hips, "Why should I even listen to you?"

Ace rubbed his face, starting to get pissed.

"God _damnit_ , woman," He hissed at her, "Touka got fucked up trying to save you. _All_ of us put ourselves in danger to rescue you." Ace paused, looking up at her, "And for fucks sake, I don't even _know_ you! And I just about died!"

Hinami didn't back down.

"Well I don't even know _you_ ," She said, stalking up and putting her right index finger in his face, quite a stretch for her, since he towered over her by over a foot, "And even if Sister told me to go with you… She wasn't in her right mind! You could be a creepy pervert for all she knows!"

"Hey, you don't even know me!" Ace yelled, slapping her finger out of his face. Knowing he was getting too loud, he tried calm the situation, "Listen, I've got a bed upstairs-"

She slapped him.

"Are you trying to get me into bed with you?" Hinami said, stepping back from him. "I'm not that kind of girl!"

"What? _No!_ " He said, his attempt to diffuse the situation done, and his anger growing once again. "Jesus Christ! What's wrong with you?"

He turned away from her, going back to the couch and grabbing the new TV he'd bought several weeks before, turning it on and navigating through the DVR to the last movie he'd been watching in his spare time.

"What're you doing?" Hinami asked, turning to look at the TV as he brought the movie up.

"I'm going to watch Alfred Hitchcock's _Notorious_." Ace said, sitting back into his couch, not even looking at the ungrateful woman in his home. When she began to say something, he finally looked at her, waving his hands in front of him in annoyance. "I don't care what you do? Okay? I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do, you can do what you want too. Kapeesh?"

She went into his kitchen in a huff, but he soon heard the noises of someone hungrily feeding.

Ace continued watching the film, finally letting himself relax.

"What is that movie you're watching?" Hinami asked, calm and collected now. Ace finally noticed she was still wearing the prison uniform, and asked her about it. "Well, I don't expect you to have any woman's clothes…"

Ace shrugged and went upstairs, coming down with a T-Shirt and a pair of short pants.

"I can go shopping tomorrow, I guess," He said, handing the clothes to her, and pointing to the bathroom near the front door, "This all happened sort of suddenly, okay? I wasn't prepared."

Once again, he sat on the couch, suddenly incredibly tired. When she exited, she looked sort of ridiculous in the far oversized clothes. Even then, he still found her very pretty, even if she looked haggard.

"Please don't stare at me," She said when his gaze had lingered a little too long. He just brushed it off, as she sat on the couch, as far away from him as she could, "Now… What's up with this movie?"

And so they watched the movie, Ace periodically stopping it too explain concepts in the movie that didn't totally transfer between American and Japanese. By the time it was over, though, Hinami had fallen asleep. He carried her up to one of the beds and laid her on it, then went and slept on the couch.

Ace's phone woke him the next day. He'd found that he'd slept in past when he usually did. Missing the phone, he checked and saw it was Banjou.

"Hey, whatsup?" Ace asked when he called back.

"Touka asked me to call you," Banjou said, sounding a little harried, "Some Investigators are snooping around the shop, and so we need to keep… _her…_ Hidden for a few weeks. She wants you to get out of the city."

Ace nodded slowly, then looked up as Hinami came down the stairs, wiping water from her hair with a towel.

"Hey, Banjou," Ace said, "Could you tell Hinami that?"

"I already heard him," She said, "I could hear him coming down the stairs."

Ace narrow his eyes at her.

"How…"

She shrugged, accepting the phone from him anyways.

"I guess I just have pretty good hearing. Hello, Mr. Banjou," Hinami said, walking past him and into the kitchen, leaving him standing their looking dumb, hand still raised, "Yes, it was alright. He's just a little strange. Can I talk to Sister? No? Okay. Where should we go?"

When she finally gave the phone back to him, he was halfway through cleaning his pistol, having the entire thing spread out on the table in front of him. Hinami looked at him as if he was insane.

"Why do you need that?" She asked, picking up one of the bullets he was going to reload his spent magazine with. "You're a Ghoul."

"It's a backup," Ace said, then remembering his encounter with the three Investigators during Hinami's rescue, "And it's also a great surprise."

Finishing his cleaning a few minutes later, he reassembled the pistol, then went out for a quick stroll down to the nearest clothing store, where he purchased several pairs of different woman's clothing, much to the clerk who checked him out's confusion.

"The airport lost my sister's luggage," He quickly explained, "So I'm doing her a favor and picking up what she needed."

Hinami wasn't quite pleased with what he'd picked out, but Ace didn't really care, he had to promise to take her shopping at some point when they got wherever they were going.

"I really think we should go to Nagoya," Hinami said, tapping the map that Ace had lain on the table, "I know of a few Ghouls there… And it's not too far in case we need to get back here."

Ace acquiesced, not having any idea of where they should go. He ordered the train tickets online, and booked a stay in a decent looking hotel on the outskirts. He updated Agent Jackson on where'd he'd be going, telling her that they were following a lead.

 _A little white lie every now and again doesn't hurt._ Ace thought as he hung up the phone. Then he started packing, trying to stay light. Hinami had no choice but to stay light. That was when he broke the bad news to her.

"We need to make you look different." Ace announced, holding a pair of scissors in one hand. "Else someone may recognize you."

"Don't you dare!" Hinami growled at him, "I'll hurt you if you try to cut my hair!"

He advanced on her, snipping the scissors.

"I mean it! Get away!"

Hinami's foot flashed out, and Ace collapsed like a puppets whose strings had been cut.

"I told you to get away!" Hinami said, as Ace silently screamed. Then she picked the scissors up from the ground, and cut off several inches of her hair. "I'll wear a medical mask until we get to Nagoya. That should be enough."

And so, an hour before their train left, they called a taxi, and as they'd agreed upon, acted like a young couple. They nearly had to turn around walking into the station, when they saw a pair of Investigators standing near one of the entrances, but they finally decided to just walk by.

They were early, so they strolled through the train station for a few moments, stopping at the small bookstore in there, where Ace bought Hinami a book she requested, buying himself a magazine whose cover he found interesting.

Ace didn't relax until they were seated, towards the front in first class. Even then, he couldn't rest during the nearly silent trip, as Hinami devoured the book in front of her next to him, and he found that the magazine he'd bought was a cooking magazine.

 _And not something very useful for a Ghoul…_

"What's your book about?" Ace asked, after watching the countryside flash by at 200 miles per hour grew boring.

"It's Sen Tatatsuki's newest book," Hinami said, nearly a quarter of the way through the book, " _Akiresuhaundo_."

" _The Achilles Hound_?" Ace repeated. "What a strange name."

"Yeah, it's weird, she usually takes a little while to write these, but this one seems to have gotten rushed through in the last few months." Hinami looked up at him, smiling as she went into detail explaining the story.

* * *

"The Americans are flexing their muscles again."

The men and women who sat around the large table were the cream of the crop of the CCG, the Special Class and Associate Special Class investigators of the CCG. At the head of the table sat Yoshitoki Washuu, to his right were Itsuki Marude, Mougan Tanakamaru, Ui Koori, Akira Mado and Matsuri Washuu. To his left were Aura Kiyoko, Iwao Koriwa, Juuzou Suzuya, Chuu Hachikawa and finally Kousuke Houji. Directly across the table sat the Death God of the CCG, Kishou Arima.

They all nodded, except Arima, at Yoshitoki's statement.

"How is First Class Ihei recovering?" He asked Akira, who he knew had been staying by her bedside for the last few days, as some kind of penance.

"Poorly, unfortunately," Mado's face contorted between guilt, sadness and anger, "Hellhound's bullets destroyed one of her kidney's, and the other caused severe internal damage. He nearly killed her."

"And your own wounds?" He asked, gesturing to the sling holding up her right arm.

"They're fine." Mado touched the bandage over the bullet wound. "I know Hidenori took his wounds much more seriously. I don't think he can stand being stuck at a desk for the rest of his life."

A chuckle ran around the table, though it touched neither of the men at either end.

"Okay. Now, what do we have on this new Ghoul?" He said, sitting back in his chair and steepling his fingers in front of his face. "How did he take out an Associate Special and two First Class agents with such ease?"

Akira stood, handing out the stack of files in front of her.

"I believe I know Hellhound's identity," She said, "Though it doesn't make it any easier. When I battled him, he showed himself to be a Chimera, just as the son of the Death's Head Demon did. A koukaku and rinkaku, to be exact."

She pulled an enlarged, slightly grainy photo. The young man was good-looking, even to more eastern-sensibilities. The unsmiling face and cold blue eyes were slightly unsettling though.

"This was the passport photo of Aeneas Lincoln, and is likely a few years out of date," The entire group let out a breath, "I believe _this_ is Hellhound. It's also certain that he is a member of that damned American Agency, like we always knew the D-H-D was. That equipment he used to ambush us… And the style of the ambush…"

They all nodded again.

"It's unfortunate that no one was able to get a good look at his face before he ran." Kiyoko murmured.

"Mm-boy, what was the total casualty count from the Trap operation?" Mougan changed, not having been a part of the planning, "I've heard we lost quite a few, in addition to the Ghoul's who escaped."

Chuu Hachikawa muttered something, though no one could see his lips move through his raised collar. Everyone knew that he'd been waiting to kill the Black Dog Ghoul, but she'd escaped when her truck exploded.

"Thirty two killed or wounded," Matsuri, who had planned the operation, responded, looking down at the table a little shamefaced, "Sixteen Ghouls escaped, though thirteen of them have been hunted down, since then. We did, however, capture the Black Rabbit."

"And what is his status?" Special Class Kiyoko asked. "Is he being harvested?"

"Yes. Though we've gotten little information from him."

They all knew what that meant. That was likely why a few of the uglier faces that usually sat at this table weren't present. The table quieted when Mado cleared her throat, still standing.

"I believe that we are seeing a resurrection of the group that operated out of that coffee house," She said, "As we originally connected the White Rabbit with it. The White Rabbit was among those Ghoul's who assaulted the trucks. There is little doubt that this group is somehow related to that past group."

"Excellent theory, Mado." Yoshitoki said, gesturing for her to sit down, "But now, we need to figure out how we're going to deal with the Americans. They've already threatened economic sanctions if we continue to push the issue with the D-H-D and Hellhound, as well as on other fronts. So, what should we do about the Americans at the Embassy?"

Arima moved suddenly, putting his hand on the table, palm down. When he took it away, a small earring lay on the table.

"The Hellhound hurt Hairu in a dishonorable way." His face flashed with something approaching anger, "We must destroy them."

* * *

 **Hey all, hope you like the chapter! Just wondering, how are you all liking the story so far?**


	9. Chapter 9

"I think this looks cute, don't you, Ace?"

Ace had kept his promise to Hinami, so as soon as they'd checked into their hotel, they'd taken a cab to the Osu Shopping district and began to wander around. Hinami, he learned, had rather thrifty taste when it came to clothing… But he still winced at the prices.

 _Still… Being around her is like being near a damned Aphrodite._ Looking at his phone, he lost her voice in the background murmur of thousands of people.

"Ace?"

"What? Of course you're cute." Ace said, realizing only moment after he said it, that he _had_ said it. He slowly looked up to meet her unamused gaze. "I mean… Of course it looks cute on you. Or… I meant…Uhh…"

He picked up a random dress from a pile of clothes nearby and held it up.

"I think this one is pretty cute too…" Ace stopped in mid syllable, upon seeing that he'd apparently grabbed the dress from the erotic apparel section. "Um… Well, I'm…so…dumb."

Hinami rolled her eyes, and then added the dress she'd held up to the growing pile.

"I think that's all I need." She said.

Looking at the pile of shirts, pants, dresses, jackets and unmentionables, Ace shook his head.

"You and I have a very different definition of _need_."

But he paid for it anyways. And then carried it back to the hotel. Complaining the whole way. A woman jostled him at one point, nearly making him topple over into a pile of bags and boxes.

"Excuse me." She said, turning her head slightly to look at Ace. He saw her nose flare, and then she disappeared into the crowd.

"That lady…" He began to say, looking over his shoulder.

"I know, I smelt her a little while ago." Hinami held up a hand to hail a taxi, "I think we need to go out and do a little hunting tonight."

* * *

"These are our hunting grounds, _gaijin_."

Ace and Hinami had awaited nightfall before trekking out, looking as if they were going to the numerous clubs around their hotel. Ace wore a fashionable grey suit he'd picked up in Tokyo, with a black tie and belt. Hinami wore a short black dress, with black stockings and a tan jacket. To anyone they encountered on the street, they'd just be a good looking young couple.

In actuality, Ace had followed Hinami as she walked through the city, attempting to trace the scent of Ghoul that pervaded.

It hadn't taken long, as Hinami had led them into a small park, where they both quickly put their masks on, Hinami having purchased a cheap bird mask on their shopping trip. Then, they'd found the group of twenty or so Ghouls, in an assortment of clothing styles, busy butchering an unlucky late-night jogger. At the two stranger's arrivals, several of them had turned to watch them, kakugan turning looking like black holes in the darkness. Hinami and Ace responded, moving a few feet apart.

"I don't think we will," Ace said, unmoving even as the woman who'd jostled him earlier stepped out of the crowd, licking blood off her fingers, "I think we're visiting for a while, and you better leave us the fuck alone."

The woman was older than him, though most of the others were around his and Hinami's age, with slightly curly brown hair. She was dressed in a jogging outfit, which clearly told him why she liked this park. Her face was obscured by the domino mask she wore to cover her upper face.

"Do you know who I am, shithead?" She said, approaching to within a few meters of them, "I'm Ukinori, the captain of this part of the city. Boss Zardoz didn't pick me just 'cause I'm a pretty face, either. Let's show them who they're playing with, guys."

Ukinori made the mistake of looking back for a moment. That was all the time that Ace needed.

"Now, does that get the point across?" Ace said, tossing Ukinori's severed head in one hand. "Hellhound doesn't play."

Apparently it didn't, because three more members of Ukinori's gang attacked, as the rest scattered. Two of them went for Ace, and the other for Hinami, their kagune erupting from their backs.

Ace's rinkaku pierced both of the men, but he didn't stitch them, not seeing it as necessary. Instead, he just sliced them up with his koukaku, while his rinkaku held them in place. Turning to Hinami, his eyes widened in surprise.

"Y-You're a Chimera as well?" He blurted out, lips quirking into a half smile as she stood over the body of her attacker. She looked like a butterfly, with the great big wings of her koukaku rising above her head, her rinkaku looked quite different from the types he was used too, and the type that his own rinkaku were, seeming to be made of numerous extendable segments. "God, your kagune are so pretty."

She didn't respond to him, and turned away towards the remains of the jogger's body. Ace just shrugged and began to eat the fresh meal he'd just made for himself, knowing that he would likely need the strength in the coming days.

Hunger sated for now, he went over to where Hinami was sitting, her mask beside her.

"What's wrong?" Sitting down next to her. "We need to go… Can I buy you some coffee?"

She looked up at him, tears running down her face through the blood that stained her cheeks.

"I miss my Mom and Dad," Hinami said, sounding like her entire world was gone, "All I have left are Brother and Sister… And I've nearly lost both of them. Didn't you just lose your Dad, how does it not hurt you?"

Her words, and the memory that followed, hit him hard. He'd been able to compartmentalize the memories of his Dad until now. He closed his eyes and looked away from Hinami, exhaling a heavy sigh.

"It does hurt me, Hinami," Ace finally said, "I miss him so much. And I miss my Mom… But I've never been able to spend a lot of time with them, since they always worked for the Agency. So… I guess I just think of them as being gone on a trip…"

He turned and saw Hinami staring at him, tears still staining her cheeks. Pulling a kerchief from a pocket, he offered it to her, and she gratefully took it and wiped her face.

"These past few years I've spent with Aogiri Tree…" She said, as he took the handkerchief and rubbed a smudge of blood from her chin, "Noone has been kind to me. Not like Sister and Brother, or even you, have. It was just me being used to further the organizations goals. And they made me work with _Seidou_ of all people…"

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ace prodded slightly, but stopped when she shook her head.

"Not now, but I will take that cup of coffee."

They walked to a place Ace had seen on their earlier excursion, a little American style diner. Going in, they found it most deserted, except for an old man behind the counter and a pair of waitresses.

"Oh, hello," The old man, clearly not Japanese, said when they walked in, "I wasn't expecting anyone this late."

Ace smiled at him, and noticing that they had a similar accent, he switched to English.

"Where you from, Sir?"

"New York. You?"

 _He's Italian._ Ace thought, hearing how the man pronounced his home cities name.

"Washington, D.C."

And so they were sat down, and Ace had a nice running conversation with the man, as one of the waitresses brought a pot of coffee over to them. Hinami's eyes narrowed slightly as the woman got closer, and Ace had to hold back from flinching as she kicked him. When the waitress left, she mouthed the word _Ghouls_ at him.

 _Come to think of it, I can kind of get a whiff of Ghoul._ He thought. _But they're covering it up really well with perfume or cologne._

Ace shrugged and carried on a conversation with Hinami, keeping it rather low key. As they talked, the three workers disappeared into the back, though several times one of the waitresses came out and refilled their pot of coffee. Hinami told him all about her childhood, and he talked about some of his, including his time at the Academy. She was shocked when she found out what his actual occupation was, but settled down.

"I guess I have a Brother _and_ a friend who are in that business." She said simply, as the Old man came out, pulling a chair up.

"You all are from out of town, aren't you?" He said, and then his eyes changed and his kakugan were revealed. Ace and Hinami both responded with their own, and that seemed to satisfy the old man that his senses were correct, "You need to be careful. Zardoz doesn't like outsiders, and if you cross him or one of his Block captains-"

"Like Ukinori?" Ace interrupted, "We met her earlier in the park."

The old man seemed stunned.

"How'd you get away?" He looked towards, "Ukinori is pretty well known for being brutal. Hell, she went after my dear Eufemia last week, cause she walked too close to their feeding ground."

Ace smiled at the old man.

"Let's just say Ukinori won't be bothering anyone any time soon," He took a sip of coffee, as the old man had a look of dawning realization cross his face, "Or ever really."

"Wait," The old man went on, "You _killed_ Ukinori? That means Zardoz is going to be looking for you." He stood, putting the chair back where he'd grabbed it from, "I'm sorry, I don't like asking this of customers, but I need you to leave."

"Is Zardov really that bad?" Hinami asked, curious.

"The last time someone decided to go after a group captain… Well, let's just say it didn't end well."

Ace thanked the old man, leaving a hefty amount of money on the table. Then he and Hinami went outside, walking the still pretty populated streets of late night Nagoya.

"We need to find out who this Zardov is," Hinami said, walking close by Ace, "I think we'd both rather not have to deal with anything too serious while we're here."

They walked for several blocks, heading in the general direction of their hotel, as the temperature seemed to plummet around them. Ace took his jacket off, unbothered by the temperatures, and put it around Hinami's shoulders.

"Well, aren't you quite the gentleman."

Ace stopped first, pivoting behind Hinami as the figure appeared behind them. He immediately recognized him as one of the Clowns from the Ghoul Restaurant.

"What do you want?" He asked gruffly, as seven other figures, each of them a Clown, appeared from alleys and rooftops around them. He recognized the female clown who'd offered him the One-Eyes head at the Restaurant, "We don't want any trouble."

The first Clown laughed.

"That's not what Boss Zardoz thinks, when you go around killing his people." A limousine pulled up just then, and the Clown opened the door, "I suggest you get in. The Boss wants to talk to you."

Ace's first reaction was to run, but he clamped down on it. He didn't know if he could take on all these Clowns without using his Kakuja… And he'd prefer not to use that. He was just about to push Hinami into the car, when she got in of her own free will, scooting over to let him in. The door was shut, and the limo pulled off, heading back towards the center of the city. The privacy screen was shut, but Ace knew anything they said could be recorded. He pulled his mask out, fitting it over his head, as Hinami did the same.

"Listen," Ace said, as the Limo came to a stop in an alleyway behind a rather upscale nightclub, "Anything happens… Run, and I'll cover you."

A woman opened the door for them this time, kakugan flashing as a disgusted look crossed her face.

"Follow me."

They were lead into the back of the club, the pounding beat of its music thumping even before they opened the door. Just inside the door, they took a right and went down a flight of stairs, before turning left down a wide hallway. A man's booming laughter overpowered even the music as they neared the set of doors at the far end.

The room they entered was large, seemingly larger than the entire club above them. Dozens of men and woman sat, slouched, or lay all around on red velvet covered furniture, most of them holding wine glasses that were clearly full of something other than wine. Near the center of the room sat a huge man, easily a half foot taller than Ace and a few hundred pounds heavier. Zardoz, if this was Zardoz, was clearly past middle age, and had a growing paunch. He immediately noticed the two Ghoul's entering, and yelled to them.

"So, you two are the ones that took my dear Ukinori from me," Zardoz said, from his velvet lined throne, he wore a strange crimson leather outfit, that had straps crisscrossing his body, and looked truly uncomfortable. The huge man's kakugan revealed themselves, "What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Only that," Ace began, looking at Zardoz with a challenging expression, "It was far too easy."

One of the men near him, obviously an enforcer, moved towards him. He raised a hand as if to hit Ace, but when his fist flashed in, it stopped as if it had hit a brick wall. Ace's palm stung a little bit, but seeing the man's face shift from anger and confidence to fear _did_ seem to mask the pain a little. Ace reached around with his right hand, as his left hand was still occupied holding the gangster in place, and gripped his elbow. With a tearing noise, the man's elbow and shoulder popped out of place. For good measure, Ace broke his wrist, then stepped back and away, towards Hinami.

Ace looked towards the throne, holding Zardoz's eyes as a Clown entered the chamber and walked quickly to the big man, whispering something into his ear.

"Boss, you want me to kill this asshole?" An enforcer closer to the throne, a smaller but somehow tougher looking fellow, asked Zardoz. "He just hurt Ichou, right in front of you!"

"No, no, Pasha," Zardoz said, waving Pasha away, "I don't think violence will solve anything with this fellow. His lady friend, though, we may be able to speak and make sense with. Won't we, Master Yotsume?"

"I think we could, Boss Zardoz." Hinami said, lifting her mask up, "When did you join Aogiri?"

"I haven't, officially," The big man said, smiling, "But we like to work with them. Makes me good money. Now, do you mind telling your boyfriend to relax, he looks like he's going to start breaking people in half any second.?"

"He isn't my boyfriend," Hinami responded quickly, "But he is a close associate. Now, would you like to talk business, in private?"

Zardoz nodded, and a room was made open to them, filled with couches. Zardoz joined them, with only the one guard, Pasha, with him. When the doors were shut, Hinami went up and hugged the huge man.

"It's nice to see you, Hinami, it's been too long." Zardoz said, patting her head. "I was so sorry to hear about your parents."

"Thank you, Mister Zachariah," Hinami said, sadness at the memory of her parents deaths flashing across her mind, "I'll miss them dearly."

"Wait, you two know each other?" Ace asked from where he sat.

"Oh, yes." Zardoz said, hand on Hinami's shoulder. "I was a friend of her parents when they lived in Nagoya, back before she was born. They visited a few times when things got a little too hot in Tokyo." He downcast his eyes, before saying, "Fucking CCG."

"How has business been?" Hinami asked, sitting down next to Ace.

"It's been alright," The big man said, sitting on the other end of the couch, "Lately the CCG has been almost a non-presence around here. Things seem to have been heating up in the last few months elsewhere, and I've been running a pretty tight ship." He shifted a glance towards Ace, "Or I was, until someone decided to kill one of my group captain. I can expect a power struggle in what was otherwise a peaceful area of the city."

Ace held his hands out, palms up.

"Sorry?"

Zardoz laughed, peering down at Hinami.

"I like him, Hinami, he is quite funny." Zardoz then looked back at Ace, "I think I can forgive you, but only because it seems like you're taking care of my Hinami."

Hinami and Ace blushed in unison. Zardoz let out another thunderous laugh.

"Ah, young love!" The big man stood, looking down at his two embarrassed guests, "'The heart has its reasons, that reason knows nothing of'. Now come, let us rejoin the party as friends!"

And so they were treated like royalty the rest of the night, given glasses of blood and fawned over by Zardoz's hangers on. At one point, Ace found himself near the Clown who had first confronted him on the street.

"Enjoying the party?" The Clown asked, when Ace just glared at him, the Clown went on, "It's rare that Zardoz let's someone who crossed him live. Must be lucky for you that you were hanging with a high ranking member of Aogiri Tree."

Ace just ignored him, sipping off of his wine. He really didn't like these damn clowns. After a few minutes, the Clown seemed to grow bored and moved off into the party, leaving Ace alone with his thoughts. He smiled watching Hinami converse with Zardoz and his people. His heart felt strange thinking about her, like it couldn't decide what to think.

 _I've barely known her two days._ He thought, leaning back against the wall. _This isn't like with Itori… That was different. This…_ this _, I want to take my time with. I'm not going to rush anything. Especially if she works for an organization that has goals that work against mine._

He put down his glass, and walked back into the party, joining the conversation between Zardoz and Hinami.


	10. Chapter 10

"Yes, Ambassador Chavez would love to come visit your factory. I'll tell him right away. Alright, buh-bye."

Angela Jackson leaned back in her chair, stretching in her plush leather chair, not used to working this late. If there was one thing she hated about being part of the ambassador's protection detail, it was the fact that she had to impersonate someone else while in Tokyo. She was technically his second assistant, though those duties only took up a few hours each day, just answering the phone and redirecting most of the drivel that reached her to his head assistant.

The rest of the time she spent monitoring Tokyo, and the CCG from a small office in the basement of the Embassy, as well as keeping an eye on Agent Lincoln, who'd been in Nagoya for the past two weeks. Because she wasn't there in her basement office, it was already far too late when she noticed what was happening outside. Her first inkling of trouble was the sight of a helicopter swooping low, two men manning a machine gun in the open sidedoor. Standing, she went to the window, and looked down to see a police cordon around the entrance gate of the Embassy.

Grabbing her phone, she called down to the gate.

"Sergeant, what in the hell is going on?" She and the old man had known each other for years, since she'd been stationed here, and he didn't even question why the Ambassador's assistant was calling him and demanding answers. "What are the police doing down there?"

"It's not the police, ma'am," The Sergeant sounded harried, and yelling could be heard in the background, a young voice calling for someone to stand back, "It's the CCG. They say there is going to be an attack. We-"

The line snapped off as the Embassy building rocked from multiple explosions, and she could see a fireball shoot up from where the gate had been. The sound of gunfire immediately broke out, and Angela was forced to retreat from the window as it was shattered by stray bullets.

Dropping the phone, she reached under her desk and pulled the emergency pack she always kept their. Quickly fitting the small earbud/microphone in, and clipping it to the walkie-talkie, she found the channel the Marine Security Guard channel.

"Alpha One, this is Hickory, do you read?"

"Hickory, Alpha One. I read you 5 by 5," The Colonel in charge of the guard detachment said, "We have multiple Ghouls moving up through the foyer and from the underground."

"Is Big Dog secure?" Angela asked, Big Dog being the Ambassador, as she pulled the small P90 close quarters combat weapon from the hidden recess in the bottom right drawer of her desk. "Alpha One?"

"Roger, roger!" Gunfire erupted in her eardrums, and somewhere in the building below another explosion thumped, "Big Dog is secure. We're heading for the saferoom! Request immediate support!"

 _What in the hell is going on…_ Angela asked, as she headed for the stairwell. _How did the CCG know about this attack before we did?_

She thought she knew the answer, but didn't like what the consequences of that would be. Pulling her cellphone out, she had one final call to put out.

"Ace, the Embassy is under attack," Angela said when the other Agent answered, "How fast can you be back here?" When she heard his answer, she cursed. "Alright, I'll try to hold out as long as possible. Just get the word back to the Agency, this may be the CCG's doing."

Then she entered the stairwell, looking downwards. A group of men wearing non-Marine issue armor were making their way upwards, she could see they were some kind of cloak over it all, but the outline was unmistakeable. Pulling a grenade from her belt, she pulled the pin, waited a few moments, and then dropped it down the stairs, before stepping away from the railing and covering her ears. The stairwell reverberated with the explosion when it went off, and a hot plume of smoke and air rushed upwards, followed by the sounds of men in pain.

 _I have to make it to the basement._ She thought, following her grenade over the side of the stairs, landing on the railing four stories below, her bikaku already whipping out. One of the unlucky fellows got his rifle up, but died as Angela put a burst from her P90 through his skull and neck, and the other survivor of the grenade died as her bikaku split him in half. _This is no time to hold back…_

"Alpha One, what's your position?"

"Pinned down at the rear of the foyer. Beta and Charlie squads are moving to us, but Delta looks like it's totally gone."

"Alright, get ready for some backup."

At the rear of the foyer was a wide glass window, and she came crashing through this as fast as she could, gun firing wildly, even as she whipped her bikaku at the row of cloak wearing attackers who had Alpha pinned down. Her remaining two grenades sailed behind them, ricocheting and shattering the glass windows. They landed among the group though, and they died as the grenades exploded.

Angela landed in front of the group of injured Marines, shielding them from return fire with her bikaku, which flattened into a kind of barrier. All around them were the mangled bodies of the men and women who Angela had worked with on a daily basis. Alpha One had a bullet wound to his shoulder, and blood ran down his face.

The lights went out all around them, casting the humans into near darkness. Angela's kakugan granted her much better night vision, and so she was able to see what was coming.

"Go, Alpha One!" She ordered, as a group of figures appeared outside the windows, wearing the coats of CCG Ghoul Investigators. "Get the Ambassador to safety, and get the word out."

The squad of Marines dragged the chubby little man to safety, even as Angela squared off with the figures in front of her. She immediately recognized one of them.

"This building is property of the United States," Angela ground out, shielding herself with her bikaku, "Remove yourself from the property immediately or face the consequences."

"I don't think so, _assistant_ ," Akira Mado said, wielding a long rinkaku Quinque, "It's unfortunate that a Ghoul such as yourself decided to massacre all these poor people. Your government will be stunned when they see what you've done."

 _"Bitch!"_ Angela exploded, spraying bullets at the group of Investigators, who sheltered behind their weapons. She immediately dodged sideways, Mado's Quinque missing her by mere inches. Her bikaku hammered the weapon, but she was forced to retreat up the stairs, towards the direction that Alpha squad had gone.

She fought harder than she'd ever fought in her entire life, harder even than when the Academy had been attacked by V years ago. Strike and parry, parry and riposte, she was able to hold off the trio of Investigators coming after her.

But she couldn't defend against the one who appeared behind her, a single eye flashing with a strange grey kakugan. As the slender young man manifested a koukaku that covered his shoulder and most of his upper arm, ending in a pair of long blades. One of the blades cut into her bikaku, and she felt agony as it lopped off the last quarter of her kagune. The other two with Mado also manifested kagune of various types, and attacked in concert.

Angela leapt above them, climbing through the window she'd just a few moments ago smashed.

 _Those must be the Quinx…_

"Alpha One, I'm moving towards your position." She said, "Cancel movement towards the saferoom, head for the garage! We need to get out of here."

Garbled static came back, before a voice that was not Alpha One's cut in.

"This is Alpha Two, mission failed." The man said, a horrible gurgling noise, "The… Reaper is here."

The wall behind her exploded, as the Quinx with the weird launcher-like ukaku fired his claw like missiles at her. They barely missed, and she felt the skin on her legs burn. The koukaku boy attacked again, but she hit him with her bikaku hard enough to sending him flying through the wall back towards the foyer. Mado was right behind him, and her Quinque cut into Angela's shoulders before she could block it with her kagune.

"You stupid Americans always overreach," Mado said, eyes filled with fury as she attacked again and again, "Letting a bunch of stinking Ghouls into our country… What _fucking trash!_ "

Angela retreated, knowing that she had only one duty left to perform. With her Bikaku, she smashed the pursuing Mado into the wall, sprawling her out on the floor, and then she made her run for the stairwell. She dropped down the remaining four flights in a single jump, kagune helping to cushion the fall, even as she scrambled towards the room that held the classified data servers.

Smashing through the door, she found the small box against the wall. Entering the eight digit code, she lifted the cover and smashed the glass underneath, pressing the bright red button under the glass, before pulling a small data storage device from the socket on one of the servers, and shoving it in her coat pocket. A siren started wailing, as she went back outside the room, and headed towards the garage. She only had a few moments to get away.

She came to a stop as she saw the row of hooded figures waiting for her, the white-haired Reaper of the CCG standing at its front. Mado and the Quinx squad appeared behind her, as she found herself surrounded.

"No mercy." Was all Arima said, before the group spread out.

"Damnit." She turned slightly, knowing time was running out, and her hands reached for the holsters on her back, coming out with a pair of pistols. Arima moved, the weird lance like Quinque in his hand suddenly blossoming in to a wide shield, as she fired bullets at both Arima and Mado, knowing those two were likely the greatest threat.

The siren sounded again.

 _Twenty seconds._

Angela charged towards Arima, both pistols blazing away at him. The hooded figures arrayed around him moved in on her, but she swerved at the last minute, bikaku smashing like a fist into ones chest. Something crunched, but it wasn't bone, and Angela screamed in pain as a blade cut through her right arm. The figure she'd attacked dropped his cloak and revealed a protective Quinque armor.

She lashed out at another Investigator in desperation, as she tried to escape into the parking garage a level below them. Something pierced her chest, and she felt it twist inside her. Her last thought was that the siren was suddenly very quiet.

The whole world was quiet.

* * *

"Give Zardoz my thanks when you get back."

Pasha just nodded, before lifting the helicopter off the ground. After two weeks in Nagoya, seeing Tokyo again made him feel anxious. Hinami was beside him, and waved at Pasha as he flew away. Having friends in high places, like Zardoz, had its perks.

"Alright," He said as they made their way down the buildings stairwell, shifting the bag of things he'd requested of Zardoz, "I'm going to take you to :Re and drop you off. Then… I have business to take care of."

Hinami seemed offended that he wasn't taking her along. When she started to raise a protest, he shushed her.

"Please… Please don't argue," Ace said, "This is something I have to take care of. _Alone_."

Running down the street, he found a black, fast looking car and broke the door open. He had the car hotwired in under a minute, and he and Hinami sped through the streets of Tokyo towards :Re. When he pulled into the alley behind the building, he found Renji and a healed Touka waiting for him, along with a tall, dark haired woman he'd never seen before.

"Miss Irimi!" Hinami yelled joyfully, throwing the door open and running to the older woman. "I thought… We thought…"

"I know," Irimi said, "But they just captured me. And… Other things."

The woman looked haggard, and shot Ace a glare when he stepped out of the car.

"Irimi, this is Ace," Touka introduced him, "The American Ghoul Hunter."

Irimi shot Touka a glance, and Touka laid a calming hand on the older and taller woman's shoulder. The tension in the woman seemed to evaporate, and Hinami lead her inside the restaurant, leaving Renji, Touka and Ace alone.

"Ace, don't tell me you're going to the Embassy," Touka said, looking at him sharply, "It'll be suicide. Arima is there, along with most of the CCG. And according to Kaneki, Aogiri Tree was behind the attack."

"I don't have a choice." Ace said simply, getting back into the car, moving his bag from the back of the truck to the front seat. "Take care of Hinami. I'll see you all later."

And so he backed out of the alleyway, and headed towards the Embassy. Craning his neck as he moved parallel to the CCG cordon, he was able to see that the Embassy was engulfed in flames. Pulling out his cellphone, he called the Agency Control number.

The tune played in his ear, and he spoke his name and ID number.

"Authenticate, October-Alpha-Two."

The code had been changed, and Ace struggled to remember.

"Beta-Three."

"Authentication accepted. Line is unsecured. Scrambling." The mechanical voice paused for a moment, before continuing. "Line is secured. Transferring."

"Agent Lincoln," Control said, "It is a pleasure to speak to you again. Are you aware of the situation at the Embassy?"

"I'm about five blocks away."

"What is the Embassy's status?"

"It's gone, Control."

"Status of the Ambassador and his staff?"

"Unknown. Will attempt to ascertain." Ace paused for a moment, as he heard someone speaking to Control, "Control, I suspect CCG involvement in the attack."

"The Japanese government is reporting to us that it was a Ghoul attack. Do you have proof?"

"Negative, Control." Ace pulled onto the street facing the Embassy, where the line of CCG trucks and mobile vehicles was abuzz with activity. "Will attempt to obtain proof. Expect to be out of contact."

"Roger. Good luck, Agent Lincoln."

Ace turned the lights off on the car as he stopped at a red light. His heart rate and breathing increased as he pulled his mask on, he took an extra moment to make sure it was secure, and then rested his left hand on the shifter. Revving the motor, he waited for the green light, even though there was no cross traffic. The light shifted to green, and Ace slammed the gas pedal down.

 _First gear_. The tires on the sports car spun, whining as he pushed the car to its limits. The rear drifted slightly as it lost grip, but he wiggled his hand slightly and corrected it. Ahead, the CCG line looked like a tiny line, with ant sized figures moving along it, not knowing of what was barreling towards them.

 _Second gear_. Ace kicked the clutch, changing gears. He nearly lost control again, but remembered his training, and didn't try to overcorrect. The engine screamed as Ace once again took it to the red line.

 _Third gear_. The car protested its mistreatment, bucking as Ace flashed past 150 km/h. He was less than a half mile from the CCG cordon now.

 _Fourth gear_. Someone on the cordon finally noticed the car screaming towards them, and bullets began to snap and crack past. Ace's koukaku manifested, covering his face and torso like a shield, with just enough space to see through. He was now traveling over 200 km/h, and the temperature on the stolen car was beginning to skyrocket.

 _Fifth gear_. He'd just barely entered the final gear when he crashed through the cordon, shattering one of the cheap plastic barricades on his way through. Gunfire lashed out at him, but the CCG was having a hard time hitting the dark colored car as it traveled down the unlit streets. The Embassy came up suddenly, the entire gate complex in front seeming to have been torn off by an angry giant. In a strange twist of fate, he caught sight of a familiar, pretty face in the crowd of CCG watching him come on, the blonde woman who'd tried to ambush him.

He pulled the emergency brake, nearly standing on the brake as well, as he jumped through the cratered remains of the guard shack, and into the Embassy courtyard. The car spun as part of the suspension failed, the front bumper ripping off in a shower of sparks.

The car came to a stop a few feet from the wall opposite the gate, and Ace let out the breathe he felt like he'd been holding for hours. Then he burst into motion, his koukaku slicing the roof off of the smoking car, while his rinkaku punched it into the air. Already, Investigators were charging towards him, Quinque and bullets shooting shards and bullets respectively at him. Ace used his koukaku as shields while he calmly removed the two gifts Zardoz had given him when he'd made his request to return to Tokyo. Standing up with a foot on the driver and passenger seats, he screamed at the top of his lungs.

" _Say hello, to my little friends, you mutherfuckers!"_

He held the two heavy rotary magazine grenade launchers like pistols, and began to unload the grenades on the horde of Investigators, having to adjust his aim when his first two grenades fell short. The next volley of grenades were smoke grenades, and he used the cover they provided to move into the burning Embassy, as he quickly unloaded the remaining eight grenades into the smoke.

Then he dropped them and took off down the stairs, knowing right where he needed to go, as Angela had shown him during his first month. There was nothing left of the classified data servers, as the destruction charges had done a thorough job in obliterating them. That meant Angela must have gotten to them, as she was the only person who knew how to activate those charges.

 _Which means she most likely has the Backup Drive._ Ace thought, running down towards the garage to see if a vehicle was gone. _If I can get that, I should have all the proof I need…_

Standing on the scorched concrete at the bottom of the garage ramp, was Arima, looking up at Ace. Behind him was arrayed the rest of Squad Arima.

"We've been expecting you," Arima said, eyes flashing with rage, " _You dishonorable dog._ "

Ace nearly fled at that point, but Arima began to toss something up and down in his right hand.

 _The Backup Drive._

* * *

 **Will Ace be able to get the Backup Drive away from Arima? What do you guys think?**


	11. Chapter 11

Ace retreated under a flurry of blows from Arima's subordinates, as the man himself pursued at a walking pace. He didn't even dare try to make a move for the Backup Drive, and now his only goal was to escape.

But escape looked like it was pretty far away, now. Arima squad surrounded him, harrying him at his every step, their Quinque flashing in at any opportunity. Finally, at a word from Arima, they all backed off, leaving Ace in the center of a five meter circle.

"You seriously injured one of my people," Arima said, stepping in and drawing his Quinque, "I'll make sure your death is painful."

 _I've only got one choice._ Ace thought, and his kagune acted before he'd even finished the thought. His rinkaku pierced his body, winding through every part of his body, supporting and in some cases supplanting his muscles, as his koukaku formed armor.

He immediately noticed a difference, as his thoughts seemed to be his own, though his mind was hazy with anger. All of the cannibalizing he'd been doing must have had some effect. His kouaku armor extended further than it had before, and his rinkaku seemed to be causing him less pain than it had before.

Arima attacked, a blur of motion, stabbing in at Ace's eye. Ace took the hit on one of his shield arms, and counterattacked, the blade on his right arm flashing upwards. He missed, badly, but he was suddenly more confident than he had been a moment before. A blast of some kind hit him in the chest, and he felt himself smashing into a concrete support, cracking the big structure.

Ace barely had time to dodge as Arima slashed in towards his head, but Ace batted it aside.

"Checkmate." Ace could have sworn he heard Arima say, as he brought up his second Quinque, pointing it point blank at Ace's chest.

Ace's rinkaku lashed out, causing Arima to dodge to the side, but Ace wasn't aiming for Arima. Instead, one of his tentacles wrapped around the hilt of the Quinque, turning it upwards as it fired. The blast rained dust and chunks of concrete down upon them, and Ace watched as Arima took a head-sized chunk of steel reinforced concrete to the shoulder. He watched the older man wince in pain, even as he brought his sword Quinque slashing in, cutting off Ace's tentacle that was still holding onto the ukaku Quinque he held in his hand.

Ace fought for control of his own consciousness, even as he took the momentary pause to step backwards.

"If you aren't cheating," Ace said mockingly, holding up the Backup Drive in his right hand, as he dropped into the small hole between floors, "You aren't trying hard enough."

And then he was falling downwards, utterly surprised to be alive. He slammed into the ground with enough force to leave a pair of footprint shaped craters, and then took off at a full sprint, using his rinkaku to propel himself, knowing that Arima Squad had to be pursuing him.

Reaching the edge of the Embassy compound, he took a running leap and cleared the wall with a few feet to spare, landing safely outside. He ran and ran, as the apparently stunned CCG decided what to do.

He shed his kakuja in a warehouse, unaware of the eyes following him as he moved. Ace moved through the back alleys, as the city seemed to come alive.

"Holy shit." Banjou said when Ace stumbled into the store. Everyone else looked at him as if he was a ghost.

"I'm alive," Ace said, out of breath, "Why are you all so surprised?"

"Did you fight Arima?" Touka said, "Or…"

"Yeah, I fought him." At the shocked expressions, he simply said. "I cheated. Quite a bit. And anyways, I barely hurt him."

Seeing Hinami coming down the stairs, Ace smiled at her. He was very, very surprised when she wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him with bone-crushing force.

"You're such an idiot!" She yelled, tears running down her face and into his shirt. "How could you do something so _stupid_?"

Ace didn't know what to say, dumbstruck by the sudden outpouring of emotion. His first reaction was to blurt something out, but he held himself back when he saw the look on Hinami's face. She pulled away instantly, feeling the numerous eyes watching them.

"Sorry," Ace said instead, bowing his head slightly, "But I had to get… _This._ "

He pulled the Backup Drive from his pocket, holding it up for everyone to see.

"You fought Arima, for _that?_ " Touka said derisively. "You really are an idiot."

"This should have the proof I need to get my superiors to believe me that the CCG was behind the attack." Ace held it like it was a prized treasure. "And it will let me get my revenge on them for what they did to my father."

Ace yawned, feeling drained from his little excursion. He put his arm around Hinami for a moment, leaning in and whispering something in her ear, making her blush.

"You better watch your hands, Ace," Touka said, looking at him threateningly, "Or you're liable to lose them."

"Whatever you say, Manager," Ace backed away from Hinami, smiling, "I think I'm going to head home for the night. Mind if I work tomorrow?"

Touka shrugged, and he took that as a yes. He left quickly, making it home with little trouble, and he thought with no one having seen him. He opened his front door, though, and immediately knew something was wrong.

Namely, that a handful of Clowns were lounging on his furniture. They all looked at him as he entered, their laughing masks seeming to change into the faces of demons in the dark home.

"What-"

Something smashed into the back of his head, and the world went out.

* * *

"Will Special Class Arima be okay?"

Akira looked up as Sasaki walked into the hospital room, where she sat with Hairu Ihei, who was busily knitting something. She turned in her chair, as the Academy's newest instructor came and sat down beside her.

"Yes, he's going to be fine," Akira said, "He just has a few bruises."

"I heard that it was… Hellhound that did this," He asked, "How?"

"The bastard cheated, is what he did," Koori Ui said, coming to stand at the end of Ihei's bed, "Waited until Arima was close, and then used Narukami to bring part of the roof down on top of them… And at some point, he stole the drive full of classified information from Arima's pocket. The Captain is pretty pissed."

"What reaction are we getting from the Americans?" Akira asked the other senior Investigator.

"Well, their naval base at Yokosuka has been on lockdown," He said, "They have their own people coming to pick up the pieces and start investigating. I don't think they're going to find anything. Unless Hellhound gets that data to them."

"And we don't really have a way to stop him, if he does."

They all shared a look, unsure of what that would mean in the long run.

* * *

"So, did you and Ace…"

" _No!_ "

Hinami had never wanted to hit Touka as badly as she had right then, as Sister looked at her with a smug, knowing look. She'd spent the entire morning teasing her as they sat in her apartment, getting ready to go to the restaurant.

"I wouldn't blame you if you did…" Touka said, leadingly. "I think he's only a little older than you are."

"But I haven't," Hinami said chastely, before turning a knowing eye on Touka, "Have you and Kaneki…?"

Touka flushed, and Hinami giggled. Touka joined in on the giggling a moment later.

"So, what did he whisper in your ear last night?" Touka said, "Something affectionate? Did he declare his love for you?"

Hinami rolled her eyes, and instead pulled out what he'd put into her pocket when his arm went around her. The Backup Drive felt tiny in her hands, but it seemed so _heavy_ , like it was made out of lead.

 _Take care of this for me, won't you, beautiful?_

"He gave you _that?_ " Touka said, looking at the tiny device. "I wonder why?"

"Ace seems to be a pretty suspicious fellow, doesn't he?" Hinami said, as there was a knock at the door. When Touka let Kaneki in, Hinami wrapped her arms around him. "Brother!"

"Hey, lil' sis," Kaneki said, smiling and patting her head. "Do you think I could talk to Touka alone, for a few moments?"

"Oh, yeah," Hinami said, seeming a little put off by Kaneki's brisk tone, grabbing her bag, "I was just about to leave anyways, I have to make a stop."

When she was gone, and the door was securely locked, Kaneki kissed Touka vigorously, pushing her back against the wall. Where his lips touched hers there was a feeling like fire, as he caressed her face. Finally, after several moments of heavy petting, she pushed him back.

"You haven't seen Hinami in ages, and you ask her to leave so we can do _this_ ," She said, flushed as Kaneki kissed her neck, "Kaneki… Hey, stop it! We need to talk!"

"But I haven't seen you in… Too long." He stepped back from her slightly, crossing his arms. "And with all this business going on with the US Embassy…"

He let his meaning, that neither would likely be able to see each other anytime soon.

"Why didn't you warn us about the attack, Kaneki? Or the ambush?" She asked, sitting on the dresser beside her bed. "What's been going on with you?"

Kaneki sighed.

"I don't think they trust me anymore," He said, "At least not to go on missions. They made me an instructor at the Academy."

"Why don't you just give it up, and come live with… me," Touka nearly pleaded, "Why do you keep dealing with those fucking Investigators?"

"Because some of them are my friends!" Kaneki shot back, "And I can't abandon them. I just can't, Touka."

"Well, one day you're going to have to make a choice," Touka said, looking away, "Between us and _them_. Now… What's with the CCG attacking the US Embassy?"

"They don't like Hellhound," Kaneki said, "Once they linked him with that other Ghoul working at the Embassy… The CCG couldn't let it stand. So they engineered the attack. And now they want Hellhound _very, very_ badly, since he pulled off his little stunt. Arima is already planning ways to hunt him down since he embarrassed him." Kaneki paused, frowning slightly. "You have to give it to Ace, he sure knows how to make an entrance. And piss off the most important people once there. I've been tempted to… pass on key information, to protect you guys from him."

Touka nearly hit him.

"Don't you _dare_." She said, as Kaneki took a step back and put his hands up, "Hinami likes him, fool he may be. And I can't believe you'd want to hurt her in the slightest!"

Kaneki looked stunned.

"Hinami _likes_ him? Like, _like_ likes?" He made gestured where he pointed to her and to him with both his index fingers, "Like us?"

Touka shrugged.

"I don't think, they're, _this_ far," She said, stepping close to Kaneki, "Or, should I say this _close_."

Their lips met once again, but only quickly, as Kaneki had more he wanted to say.

"I really don't feel comfortable letting Hinami hang out around Ace," He said, "The CCG just classified him as an SSS+ rated Ghoul. The same as Managers was. Unless he keeps his head low… He may lose it, Touka. And I don't want Hinami to get caught up in that."

"It doesn't matter what we want anymore," Touka said, "She's not our child. We can't tell her what to do. If she wants to be with Ace, then so be it."

She kissed him again, even as his cellphone rang.

"Well, I've got to go," He said, heading for the door, "Work is calling."

"Oh, comeon, Kaneki," Touka said, smiling at him, "Don't you have a few more minutes? It seems a little early for work to be calling you."

Kaneki sent the call to voicemail.

* * *

"Comeon, just tell us where you hid the drive."

Ace struggled against his restraints, screaming in both rage and pain as the Clown sawed through his right leg just below the knee.

" _Fuck you!_ "

When he'd awoke, he'd found himself tied to a table, his extremities pulled outwards like the points of a star. All around him had been Clowns, and he'd immediately tried to kill them with his kagune. But neither his rinkaku nor koukaku would come, as the Clown had apparently cut the organs that made them out of his back. And it would take a while for Ace to regenerate them.

They'd also used some kind of RC cell suppressant, sapping Ace's strength to the point where he couldn't break through the leather restraints. Even so, he flailed against them with all his strength.

"That's not very nice," The Clown in charge of the sawing said in mock hurt. It was the damned woman from the restaurant, wearing a smock over her clothes, "Hey, who can shave 25 times a day and still have a beard?"

Ace didn't have the patience to play her game, and began to struggle against his restraints.

"A barber!" The Clown yelled the answer gleefully, as she sliced completely through Ace's leg, in the sudden flash of pain, he bit through his tongue trying to control the pain. The Clown leaned towards him, holding his several leg, "You know, it really looks like you don't have a leg to stand on."

The world seemed to turn slightly dark as she cackled, until the darkness overwhelmed him.

Hinami was a little hurt with how short Kaneki had been with her, but she still didn't let it bring her down. She rang the doorbell of Ace's house, expecting to hear him moving around inside.

Instead, the house was as silent as a crypt. She tried the doorknob, and found it unlocked. The inside was exactly as they left it… Except.

 _Why does it smell so strongly of Ghoul?_ She thought, as she processed through at least a half dozen scents, before finding Ace's. Closing the door, she knelt down, finding his odor on the carpet. Putting her hands on the carpet, she felt something wet.

 _Blood._ Tasting it, she could tell that it was Ace's, since it tasted… _strong_ was the only word she could think of. Like espresso.

She tried to call Touka, but the phone went straight to voicemail. And neither Renji nor Banjou answered their phone either, she just left a message for each of them. Something had happened to Ace, and it looked like she was on her own in finding out where he'd gone. Going upstairs to Ace's room, she grabbed one of his shirts, and held it up to her nose, breathing in his scent.

Going downstairs, she held that smell in her memory, and opened the front door, following it out into the early morning darkness.

* * *

"Yokosuka Tower, this is Cargo flight 7845 inbound, do you read?"

"Roger, 7845, we have you on radar."

Captain John Steingall had been flying cargo for the Air Force for decades, after getting out of fighters after Desert Storm. _This_ flight though, was a little strange, as were his four extra passengers. Passengers who were not on any manifest, and had been loaded in total secrecy.

"Tower, I need to divert north around Mt. Kiyosumi, looks like there's a storm brewing up."

It was a baldfaced lie, as he banked his big C-141 jet towards the clear skies above Mt. Kiyosumi.

"Copy, 7845," The tower at the Yokosuka naval base responded, "We'll file your new flightpath."

"Good job, Captain," The woman who was in charge of his passengers said, having been leaning in between John and his co-pilot, "The Agency appreciates the help you've given us. Expect some kind of compensation."

Then she turned around and walked into the cavernous cargo bay, which was currently filled with replacement parts for the air conditioning units on one of the fleet's ships.

"Take the stick, Louis." He told his copilot, unbuckling from his seat and following the woman out into the bay.

"What are you doing?" John asked as the woman, who was wearing what looked like modified combat gear, began to converse with the rest of her group. They all pulled goggles and oxygen masks from their packs, and began to strap them on. Parachutes came out of their packs next, and each of them took a moment to check the others parachutes. "You don't think that…"

"We have a mission, Captain Steingall, that we already briefed you on," The woman said, strapping her helmet on, "And we have to complete it. Don't make us think our confidence in you was misplaced. Our usual pilot was unavailable."

His crew chief, watched the entire exchange from afar, near the panel that controlled the cargo doors. He had a pair of small oxygen tanks in his hand.

"Open the doors, Lieutenant." The woman said, pulling her black hair into her helmet as she fitted it. Before all four of them clipped their big duffel bags to their bodies.

Steingall had to rush over to the crew chief, taking one of the tanks and pressing the mask over his face. The four Agents lined up at the point where the rear door hinged. The aircraft shuddered as the hydraulics began to open the door, revealing the darkness of the very early morning.

He saw one of the Agents give him the thumb up, and then all four of them were gone, dropping into the cold darkness.

Hinami followed the scent trail Ace had left behind for several miles, even once she started moving deeper and deeper into a not so great part of Tokyo. Her cell phone didn't even get any signal.

Stopping in front of one rather forlorn looking warehouse, she knew she'd arrived. There was a single door on the side facing her, and it had a heavy latch locking it closed. Above her though, was an open window though, which she easily leapt up to, grabbing onto the edge and pulling herself inside. She smelled numerous Ghouls, and thought she could almost hear voices somewhere nearer the heart of the big building.

Slowly opening the door that lead into the heart of the warehouse, the sound of voices grew even stronger. The door lead out onto a catwalk that encircled the entire warehouse floor.

"Has she gotten him to talk yet?" A male voice said below her.

"Nope," Another, much more feminine, but still male, voice responded, "She's taken most of his limbs, but he won't talk. It may be time to just dispose of him."

The sound of a door being unlocked drew her attention, and she risked peeking over the edge of the rail in front of her. Even through the Clown mask, she knew who was stepping out of the small temporary room in the center of the warehouse. Knew her face, knew her smell. She'd spent time with her. Considered her a friend.

 _Roma._


	12. Chapter 12

Hinami mounted the rail, and launched herself towards Roma, her rinkaku streaking towards the other woman. Roma looked up, but not fast enough, as Hinami's rinkaku slashed her in half. Roma dropped to the ground, unmoving. Landing, Hinami ran to the door and yanked it open. The grisly sight inside nearly made her vomit.

Ace no longer had arms over legs… Or a lower jaw. The table he was strapped to was covered in blood, and chunks of meat that had before been a part of his body. As she drew near, she saw that he was still breathing, though the rise and fall of his chest was incredibly shallow. Fighting through the nauseating feeling, she approached, pulling the needles that were running to a strange pumping machine from his arms. Ace made a noise, and she saw that his eyes were open, and he was watching her.

She felt like crying, looking down at him, seeing the ruin of her friend.

"It's okay, Ace," She said, touching her face gingerly, "I'm going to get you out of here."

Her rinkaku made short work of the leather straps. She wrapped her arms around Ace, staining her shirt with his blood. She didn't care.

"I don't think you are." Roma said from behind her, giggling. Hinami whirled, finding Roma with two other Clowns, their kagune whipping back and forth behind them. "I'm really sorry I've got to do this, Hinami… Not really, but I thought it'd be nice if I said that before I killed you."

"Why, Roma?" Hinami choked out, as Ace's body slipped through her grasp. "I thought you were my friend?"

"I'm my own friend first, Hina," Roma said, eyes shifting to kakugan through her masks eyeholes, "And I really just wanted to get close to Kaneki," Her face took on an expression of near sexual pleasure, "Maybe taste him a few different ways. His life has been so deliciously dreadful."

Hinami shook her head, disgusted.

"You're a monster." She said, retracting two of her rinkaku while releasing her koukaku, "I won't let you do anything to Ace."

"Ahhhh, are you two in _love_?" Roma pronounced the final word like a little child would, switching the _L_ noise with that of a _W_.

Hinami attacked, koukaku reaching out to grab the two Clowns who flanked Roma, while her two rinkaku tentacles slice in towards Roma. None of her attacks landed a blow, as the three Clowns jumped away, dodging her followup attacks as well. Then Roma's rinkaku ripped through her chest, and she let out a groan as her kagune disappeared, and she slumped to the ground, beside Ace's body.

"You don't know how _hot_ I got when I found out how your mother and father died," Roma said, sounding close to a point of ecstasy, "The pure _agony_ you must have felt. Oh, my god!"

She moaned as if in the final throes of lovemaking, and under the anger and disgust, Hinami felt pity for this poor woman. Roma was clearly stark raving mad. Hinami's pity ended as Roma kicked her in the face, _hard_ , and then proceeded to twist her rinkaku inside the younger woman. Hinami let out a silent scream as the tentacle tore at the wound it had created.

Roma knelt down over Hinami, close enough that Hinami could feel her breathe on her skin.

"I'm gonna killed you both," Roma said, grinning, "The star-crossed lovers. I'll torture you while he watches, then do it in reverse! Then we'll do it all again! Oh, how much fun we'll have! Hey, you two, help me tie them up." Roma looked back to see her two fellow Clowns slumped to the ground, no sign of anyone having done anything. Even Hinami, who'd been facing them, hadn't noticed what had happened.

Then Ace moved, having healed his jaw, launching himself towards Roma with his kagune, koukaku piercing her chest, while his rinkaku went around her neck. Roma started to laugh hysterically, struggling against Ace, falling onto her hands and knees. Hinami watched as Ace lunged, gouging out Roma's kagune creating organs with his teeth, even as his rinkaku tightened around her neck.

" _Bitch. Bitch. Bitch._ How does it feel to not fucking breath?" He growled, his koukaku flashing like swords as Roma lost her limbs, " _Die_ , you psycho!"

Roma kept laughing, until something crunched in her throat, and her struggling redoubled in intensity. Ace just held on, rinkaku tightening as his koukaku kept piercing her. Finally, Roma slumped to the ground, lifelessly.

Then Hinami watched in horror as he began to devour her former friend, eating with a fervor that sickened her, even as her own stomach growled.

"Hinami," Ace said after a moment, as his body began to regenerate, holding out a piece of meat, " _Eat. Please."_

They sat in silence among the blood, the only noise the sound of their feeding. When it was over, she heard Ace make a noise like a strangled man, before he collapsed into a shuddering mess. His kagune moved wildly about him, ripping great furrows into the wall. As quickly as the shuddering began, he lay still, arms crossed across his chest as he curled into the fetal position. His kagune retracted, and he pushed himself up, onto his hands and knees.

"Ace?" Hinami said sliding across the floor on her knees to be closer to him, touching his face gingerly when he turned to look at her.

"I… I thought I was going to die…" Ace's eyes held a bit of the madness still. "She… She kept cutting me… She…" He looked at her suddenly, eyes focusing, "Y- You came for me. You saved me… Hinami…"

He wrapped his arms around her, nestling his head in the crook of her shoulder as he began to sob uncontrollably, his body beginning to shudder once again. Hinami just rested her cheek against the back of his head, slowly stroking his back and hair. She didn't know when or why, but she pushed him away, putting a hand on either side of his face and staring up into his black and red eyes.

"You're a good man, Ace."

And then their lips met, and a feeling of joy exploded in her heart. Ace's body seemed to relax even as he fought the surprise of their first kiss, his right hand reaching up and running itself through her hair.

Dragging themselves apart, she helped Ace stand, and they headed together for the door of the warehouse. The sun had already risen, and in their bloody clothes, there was no way they'd be able to make it back to :Re without being noticed. Hinami pulled her phone out of her pocket, and called Touka. When she answered, Hinami could immediately tell she was flustered. Halfway through the call, she heard Ace grunt and drop down to one knee, as he coughed up a bit of blood.

"Touka, could you ask Renji to come pick us up?"

"Where are you? I saw you called earlier, but-"

"I'll tell you when I see you," Hinami said curtly, giving Touka the address and general directions, "I'll see you soon, Sister."

"Whatever they were pumping into me," Ace said, coughing up more blood, "Is holding back my regeneration quite a bit. I think it was RC cell suppressers."

The door in front of them slammed open, dented to the point of total uselessness. Hinami stepped in front of Ace, sheltering him.

"Yo, Hinami," Naki said, stepping in with his little gang of white-suit wearing Ghouls, "The bosses have been looking for you. Come to the clubhouse when you get a chance?"

"What do you want, Naki?" She said, glaring at him and his group. Too much had happened in the last few days for her to let her guard down, even around someone who was still technically her ally.

"Tatara sent me to find that American, the Hellhound," Naki looked at Ace, an uncertain expression crossing his face, "That him?"

Ace unsteadily stood to his feet, gritting his teeth as he did so.

"Yeah, I'm Hellhound," He said, "What do you want?"

"Aogiri has an offer for you," He said, pulling an envelope out of his jacket, "This contains the information on the whereabouts of one of our associates. He's currently being held by the CCG." Naki tossed the envelope to Ace, who nearly missed it, "If you can rescue him, then Aogiri Tree will tell you of the whereabouts of the Death's Head Demon."

Hinami looked at Ace, as his eyes narrowed.

"My father is dead," Ace ground out, eyes shifting to kakugan threateningly, "If this is some kind of fucking trick…"

"Rescue our associate," Naki said, turning and heading back out the door, "And then you can find out."

When he and his gang were gone, Ace looked down at the envelope in his hand, hand shaking slightly, and then at Hinami. Then he went and leaned against the wall, completely at a loss as to what he should do. The FBGI had never trained him for this…

"Hinami, do you still have the Backup Drive?"

She reached into her pocket and pulled it out. Ace took it, put it into his own pocket, and then pressed his lips to her cheek.

"Hinami," Ace was very close to her, "I'd really like to pick up where we were a few minutes ago." He paused, as a sad smile crossed his face. "Once we get done with all of this."

He collapsed into another fit of coughing, and Hinami helped him sit down against the wall of the warehouse.

"Do you have your mask still?" Ace shook his head after checking his pockets, then nodded towards the room. Hinami took the hint, and headed back towards the gore-filled little torture chamber. She found his mask sitting on a table, and grabbed it, and then noticed something was missing.

Roma's body wasn't where she'd fallen.

* * *

Ace's phone rang in the middle of the night, as he lay on the couch in his new apartment. With his other home already known to his enemies, and with Roma and the Clowns still out there, he'd decided to move into a complex several miles away from where he had moved.

He heard the Agency tone sound, and went through the process of proving he was who he said he was. But then the tone beeped, and it seemed that the call had been dropped.

"Agent Lincoln, what is your location?" A very familiar woman's voice finally spoke, and Ace nearly dropped the phone.

" _Mom_?" He blurted out, before the uncomfortable silence from the other end. "I'm currently in a safe location."

"Do you have the Backup Drive?" Senior Agent Lucretia Lincoln, Ace's mother, asked.

Touching the precious little device that lay on the dresser beside his bed, he responded.

"Yes."

"When can we make pickup?" Her voice sounded strained, as he knew his own did, "We are on a tight schedule, and our ride can only loiter off the coast for another few days."

That meant she just had her own team, and they'd be extracted by submarine.

"Tommorow, noon," He listed :Re's address, "Copy?"

"Copy. Tommorow at noon."

And then she hung up the phone, and left Ace lying awake.

"Who was that?" Hinami asked from the bed across the room, having just woken up. She sat up when Ace didn't respond, watching him just lay on the couch, looking up at his phone. "Ace?"

"Don't worry about it, Princess," Ace murmured, his mind racing, "I'll tell you in the morning."

Ace and Hinami's sleeping arrangements were nearly the same as they had been during their time in Nagoya. He had the couch, and she had the bed. Ace had decided, and been firm with Touka, that he couldn't leave Hinami alone. She was _his_ responsibility, to protect and care for, and after a tense conversation, Touka had relented.

"Ace, come here." Hinami said, patting the thin blanket he'd gotten. "I'm cold.

Ace slid off the couch, slowly approaching even as he started freezing his butt off, since he hadn't run the heater. Crawling into bed, Hinami curled up beside him, a warm, _happy_ presence.

"Hinami, what do you want from me?" Ace said, and when he heard how blunt that sounded, he continued. "I mean… Like, what do you want for _us_? Is there an us?"

"I don't know, Ace," She replied, "Life is just… Just so confusing right now."

She put a hand on his chest, pushing herself up onto her elbows, looking out of the tiny window at the head of his tiny bed.

"I lost my parents two years ago, and met Brother and Sister, and Renji, and Mr. Yoshimura, and all the others," Ace stroked her back as she spoke, too unsure of his own voice to reply, "Then, I joined Aogiri Tree… And did things that I'm not proud of. I've felt so, so empty these last few years."

"Until I met you."

"Me?" Ace said, suddenly feeling strangely awkward, "We've only known each other for, a month. I didn't think I could ever have that kind of effect on a person…"

"But you did," Hinami said, "And now we're here."

Ace sighed.

"Hinami, I adore you," He said, as she turned her head to look at him, "But I think we need to get some sleep. Tomorrow is going to be a long day."

* * *

The next day came upon them quickly, as Ace and Hinami found themselves back at :Re, working the morning shift. Ace periodically kept patting his left pocket, where he'd stashed the Backup Drive. Ace was in the backroom when he heard the door chime go off, and came out to find Touka seating a tall, elegant woman. Her black hair was tied up in a bun, and she wore an expensive looking pantsuit. With her was a man, small and darker of skin.

"Ace, could you take care of that table?" Touka asked, walking by him towards the door to the small kitchen, where Renji had appeared, eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Hello, how can I help you today?" Ace asked his own mother, looking into her blue eyes that matched his own. Ace inclined his head to the other man, Agent Renaldo Luciano.

"Could we have a cup of coffee? One shot of espresso?" His mother asked in fluent Japanese, far smoother and with less accent then his own rough voice.

"Sure, I'll bring it right away."

The only other customers in the store were all Ghouls, and even they seemed to sense something about the strange woman and her companion, as they sat and chatted like two friendly coworkers, sometimes switching to English and then back to Japanese.

Ace hurriedly went and grabbed what he'd need to make the coffee, and began to work on it even as Hinami came out to check on the table that she was helping to take care of. She looked at the table, and seemed to sniff the air. Then she gave Ace a wide-eyed look of surprise.

"Is that…?" She said, but Ace held up a slightly shaking hand. He finished pouring the coffee and brought the two cups, on their little plates, out to the table.

"Oh, thank you." His mother said, as if they weren't mother and son. "Is your Manager by any chance in?"

"She's in the back room," Ace said, slightly unsteadily, "Would you like to talk to her?"

His mother nodded, and he led her to the backroom, where Touka, Renji and Hinami looked up in slight shock as he closed the door and wrapped his 'customer' in a hug, and she returned it just as fiercely.

"I'm so proud of the work you've been doing, Aeneas," Ace's mother said, "I know it must have been hard after the CCG got your Father."

"Mom, I don't know if Dad is really gone," Ace replied hurriedly, pulling out the Backup Drive and handing it to her, "I've got some leads I need to follow-"

But his Mother just shook her head, as Touka and Renji began whispering with Hinami behind them.

"We have orders to pull you out," She said, pocketing the drive, "The Agency wants someone more experienced in place. I'm supposed to leave Renaldo here to take over your duties."

Ace was suddenly consumed by a slight panic. All of the relationships that he'd built up over the last few months seemed to be crumbling in front of his eyes. If he was transferred back to the US, then he'd likely never see any of his friends again. He couldn't bear that, especially being without Hinami.

"No, Mom, I can't go." Ace said firmly, stepping back from his Mother's embrace, "I'm too deep into things here. I've got my thumb on the pulse of Tokyo, and Renaldo doesn't. He's coming in cold, and he isn't ready for it."

"I have an order to bring you home," His mother said, a severe look crossing her face, as her kakugan appeared, the red veins creating a strange pattern around her eyes. "And it is non-negotiable, Aeneas."

"You and I both know that's crap," Ace shot back, suddenly wishing that it was his Dad he was talking to, as he'd have seen the sense in his argument, "You're the most senior agent on hand, since Agent Jackson was killed during the raid on the Embassy, and that means you have the leeway to change the Agency's deployment orders. Now, I need you to do this."

"No."

" _Damnit,_ Mom, I just need this one thing from you," He said angrily, his own kakugan flashing now, even as his Mother kept shaking her head, "I don't have time for this! I refuse your order."

His Mother looked aghast.

"You can't refuse an order, Aeneas," She said, her voice dropping low, "It'll ruin your career. You _can't_ afford to do that."

"No," Letting the anger from years and years of not seeing his mother for months at a time come boiling out, "It will hurt _your_ career, if your son doesn't obey you. I'm not a child anymore, and I'm the Agent-On-Scene. You're supposed to take my advice on the situation. And I say that I need to stay here."

"Fine," His mother said, seeming to sag, "I know that look you're giving me. You're far too much like your father. He never listened to me either."

And then she walked out, back to her table, as if she hadn't just spoken to her son. Ace just shook his head, and went out the back door, fuming. When Hinami made like she was going to follow him, he shook his head. He closed the door and walked down the alley a little ways away.

"Always, always fucking work with her," Ace complained to himself, kicking an empty trash can and sending it sailing across the alleyway, "Doesn't give two shits about anything except her career, no wonder she and Dad are estranged…"

Ace stopped when he felt a presence behind him, turning, ready to snarl at whichever of his friends had decided to follow him. His Mom stood a few paces behind him, a sad look on her face, one hand outstretched as if she were going to place it on his shoulder. Her hand dropped, and she turned and marched off down the alley, hands going into her pockets.

"Mom…" Ace called after her, but she'd already turned onto the sidewalk.

Ace knew he'd screwed up bigtime. Grabbing the trashcan he'd kicked and putting it back where it had been before, he walked back into :Re and went about the rest of the day as normally as possible, trying to hide the sadness and anger that filled his heart.

At the end of the day, once he and Hinami were back at their apartment, he pulled the envelope that the Aogiri Executive had given him, holding it in his hands.

"Dad, if you're alive," Ace promised to a silent room, "I'm going to save you."

He only hoped he could keep the promise.


	13. Chapter 13

"All right, this is what I've found out."

Ace sprawled on the couch of his apartment, the dining room table dragged unceremoniously in front of it. Touka, black streaks starting to show in her bluish hair, sat beside Renji, and Hinami sat beside Ace on the couch. Irimi and Nishiki sat at either end of the table, both their usual quiet selves.

"Do you know who the target is?" Touka interrupted. "Kaneki couldn't find any information on this place at all."

Ace pulled a picture from the folder, revealing a dapper looking gentleman in a suit, with two CCG agents in close proximity. It seemed to have come from a security camera of some kind, as it was slightly grainy.

"It's called the Yomi Building, apparently," Ace said, pointing to the design, like an inverted pyramid, going down a few hundred meters into the ground, "And this guy is known as Jack the Scythe, according to all this."

"I know Jack the Scythe," Irimi spoke up, finally. Ace had watched her closely the last few days, as she seemed to finally start to recover from her ordeal, even with her seeming to recover, an air of sadness surrounded her. "He used to run a gang in the 16th Ward, before he was beaten and he and his gang were absorbed into a larger gang. Sadistic even for a Ghoul."

"Should we really be rescuing this guy?" Touka seemed annoyed that he was there, as if she had someplace better to be. "Sounds like he's right where he belongs."

"If you don't want to be here, then go," Ace replied, "One way or another, I'm going to do this, even if I do it alone." He pulled another sheet from the envelope, turning it so the writing faced Touka, "See that name there… Interesting that he shares the same last name as you. And I seem to remember you telling me you had a brother named Ayato..."

"Why in the hell didn't you tell me about this sooner?" Touka suddenly seemed much more interested in what he was saying.

"Because _I_ wasn't the one who noticed it," Ace said, inclining he head to the side, at Hinami, "Hinami did. So, you should thank her."

Touka gave him a lingering glare, before sitting back in her chair and crossing her arms.

"So, what kind of fool plan are you going to come up with this time?" Nishiki said, putting his elbows on the table, "Should we steal a car and drive it through the gates again? They'd never think someone would be _that_ dumb, twice."

It was Ace's turn to give someone a lingering glare. He flipped the diagram of the prison over, revealing a top-down view of the same prison. His finger traced a long line extending away from the prison, towards the nearby seaside cliff.

The maps showed that the prison was built on a tiny island just outside the mouth of Sagami Bay, which was separated from Tokyo Bay by the Yokosuka peninsula. Twenty or thirty miles off the coast.

"Nope, not this time." Ace said, "From what little research I was able to do, it seems that this prison was built into the bedrock of the island, and has numerous tunnels extending every which way. This is a small access tunnel that leads to a small crevice in the rock. Apparently, whatever supplies they can't fly in, they bring in by boat." His finger tapped the little boat bay. " _This_ is where we go in."

"So we're going to swim?" Touka said sarcastically.

"No, Touka, we aren't going to swim," Ace said, pinching the bridge of his nose, "We're going to steal one of their supply boats."

"And sneak in through this tunnel?" Irimi said, looking intently at the details of the map. "If it's defended, then that could seriously set us back. We'd be trapped."

Ace actually giggled, a boyish sound that made everyone present look up.

"That's where _I_ come in. I'm going to drop onto the island a few hours before you go in, and clear the way for you." At everyone's confused glance, Ace explained, "I spoke to my superiors earlier today. They've arranged for me to catch a lift on an outgoing transport craft. I'll parachute out and land on the island. Then… Well, I think I'm going to borrow some of their toys…"

Nishiki stood up, shaking his hands and head in a very negative way.

"You're insane. Honestly," He headed for the door, "First, you come here and stir up everything. Then you drive a _fuckin' car_ through a line of Doves and fought fucking Arima. And _now_ you want us to attack a heavily guarded prison on an island out in the middle of the Bay? _Nope_. I'll see you all at work tomorrow."

"Asshole," Touka muttered, before Nishiki got to the door, "I'm gonna have to kick your ass. You _owe_ me for all the advances I've been giving you on your paycheck."

"Hey, if you want to go get killed with Ace, then go," Nishiki said, "But I have somebody to live for, and I can't really afford to die."

Touka started to get up from the chair, and Nishiki put his hands up, but Ace reached across the table and grabbed her arm.

"No, no, it's fine." He said quickly, trying to keep them from wrecking his meager little apartment. "Someone has to run the restaurant. And I was thinking that, with Banjou's help, Nishiki and Hinami could run it."

"But, I'm going with you!" Hinami sounded hurt. "I thought you said…"

"I changed my mind," Ace said, patting her hand, "But like Nishiki said, we all have somebody to live for."

"Are you two…?" Nishiki said, looking at Ace's hand where it rested on Hinami's hand. Apparently he wasn't exactly the quickest on picking up on emotions. "Oh, shit, you two are _fuckin'._ "

Ace watched in mild horror as Touka began to assault Nishiki, spilling out onto the floor by his front door.

 _Just another day in this crazy town._

* * *

Associate Special Class Akira Mado couldn't believe she'd let herself work so late, Maris Stella wasn't going to be happy with her when she got home. But Sasaki had come to her asking a flurry of strange questions, and she'd been forced to comfort him when he lost it. But that was what happened when one was the motherly figure of One-Eyed Ghoul.

She rushed up the stairs to her apartment, struggling to sort through her keys. Finally, she through open the door, but Maris Stella wasn't waiting at the door for her. Instead, she was curled up in her spot on the kitchen rug.

"Akira." A deep, masculine voice said behind her. She froze, not able to believe whose voice it belonged too.

"Amon?" She said, turning to see the tall, cloaked figure near the glass door that led to her balcony. His face was mostly in shadow, but she could tell immediately it was him.

"Yeah, it's me." He held up a hand when she tried to step nearer to him. When she saw the strange three fingered hand, she recoiled.

"You… You're like Takizawa!" She said, hand moving towards the attaché case sitting on the counter behind her, ready to pull her Quinque out. "Did you come here to kill me?"

Her hand gripped empty space, and she looked on in stunned surprise as Amon held the case up in his non-deformed hand.

"I came to talk." He said, leaning on the big staff he held in one hand, "Just that."

Akira couldn't believe this… Three years dead, and he just pops into her apartment and wants to 'talk'. She held her silence, ready to make a run for the door.

"Akira, do you want to know what my last thought was before Eyepatch got me?" Amon went on, "It was of you, and how I should have kissed you in that cemetery. Now… If you don't want to talk, that's fine, because I have much to tell you about."

* * *

Ace and his friends put their plan into action two nights later, when the cargo flight he was supposed to ride on was scheduled to leave. He took a cab to just outside the airbase, and then snuck in through the underground. He simply popped up, seemingly out of nowhere, in the hangar he'd been directed to find.

"Holy shit, where'd you come from?" A man with a captain's rank tabs said, hand going to the pistol at his hip. When Ace held up his ID, the man's hand drifted away, though not too far. "Oh, so you're part of my next cargo."

"Yep, did you get the things I need?" Ace asked, inspecting the big aircraft, and the men loading it.

"All of it's on the aircraft, go in that hatch and take a quick left, all your stuff is in there," The Captain said, gesturing towards the aircraft, "Now, get onboard and stay hidden. I'd prefer nobody see you before we take off. My crew chief and co-pilot already know about you, so don't worry 'bout them."

Ace climbed onto the C-130 and found a duffel bag waiting for him in the already loaded cargo deck. The crew chief gave him a strange look when he stepped out into the open, but the man went back to what he was doing after only a moment's glance. Ace had had a few things he needed, and it looked like the Captain had delivered.

 _Two magazines for my pistol. Smoke grenades. Frag grenades. Flashbangs. Four blocks of C4 with wireless detonators and sensors, a full size signal jamming unit, and a parachute and jumping gear._

After a half hour, the Captain came on and started his preflight checks, and sent his co-pilot back with a little info.

"Alright, we're going to pass over this island at 10,000 feet," The nervous looking man said, "We'll give you a countdown, and Captain Steingall has already provided you with a GPS unit. It's gonna have to be quick though, cause it's such a small target."

"What kind of window do I have?" Ace asked, pulling a balaclava over his head, and then putting a pair of goggles over that. He was already wearing a warm enough jacket and long slacks, so the jumpsuit in the bag was unneeded. Ace slung the parachute over his back, strapping in and then double and triple checking the straps.

"Less than two minutes, and then you're going to have to swim."

Ace nodded, and continued fitting all his gear into place. The copilot watched him for a few moments, and then went back to the cockpit. The plane shook slightly as it was pulled out onto the tarmac, and continued shuddering as the engines started with a roar. Pulling out his phone, he called Touka.

"You guys doing alright?" He asked when she picked up.

"Yeah, they didn't have anyone worth talking about guarding this boat," Touka still sounded out of breath, "We're going to go soon."

She hung up, and Ace put his phone away. He strapped in across from the crew chief, feeling a little tense. He was just glad that Hinami wasn't with them, and wouldn't be in danger. She'd tried to convince him to let her come along, but he'd made it clear that there was no way she was going anywhere near that prison.

"Alright, we're taking off." He heard Captain Steingall's voice say over the PA system into the cargo bay, as the plane pulled free of the Earth, "You've got about ten minutes before we're over the island."

Ace leaned back into the uncomfortable seat, closing his eyes for a few minutes. Then he opened his eyes and looked at the crew chief across the bay. When the Captain came on again and said he only had three minutes left, he stood, as did the crew chief.

"How have things been at the base?" He asked, having to speak loudly to be heard, "Has the CCG been bothering you lately?"

The crew chief shrugged.

"Not really. There's always a few of them hanging out around the base entrance, and we aren't really allowed to go off the base anymore." The man said, "Too much tension since those Ghouls attacked the Embassy. We've heard a lot of rumors about that."

Ace nodded, that made sense. He was just about to respond when the plane suddenly rolled onto its side, sending he and the crew chief stumbling into one another.

"Someone just launched a fucking rocket at us!" The pilot came on the PA, panic straining his voice. The plane rocked, seeming to drop in the sky for a moment. " _Shit… They took out part of our wing! Hey, Ghoul-boy, get the fuck off my plane!_ "

Ace saw the crew chief struggling towards the rear hatch controls, and snatched a strap in preparation of the gate being dropped. Cold, icy air hit him like a gut-punch when the hydraulic door dropped.

" _Go, go, go!_ " The crew chief screamed over the hammering noise, as fire seemed to erupt from somewhere to Ace's right. Ace let go of the strap and sprinted towards the hatch opening, taking a leap outwards. The wind caught him, and sent him tumbling, the whirled revolving far faster than Ace could cope with. He squeezed his eyes shut and spread out his arms and legs, trying to slow the spinning and flipping.

When he finally stabilized, he opened his eyes to find himself above the Bay still, with his target clearly illuminated quite a distance away. He pulled the parachute cord, and grunted as the parachute did its job and stopped his fall. Taking a moment, he made sure everything he needed was still attached to his body, and when he'd made sure of that, he looked upwards at the plane he'd just been in, trailing fire from one wing.

 _Shit_. He thought, just as something caught his eye. Something flared on a beach a few miles away, and it leapt upwards, like a fiery arrow shot from a bow. The missile tracked on the already flaming plane and struck it dead center, shattering the big aircraft into a hundred fiery little pieces.

Ace grabbed the handles of his parachute and began to steer himself in the general direction of the island, unsure of what he should do. After a few moments, his phone started ringing.

"Hello?"

"Shit. How are you alive?" Touka said, "Was that your plane that just exploded? Are you okay?"

Ace had sense of how absurd this moment was, as he dropped towards an enemy held island, steering himself with one hand while talking on a cellphone.

 _Eh, things could probably get stranger._

"Yeah, but I guess you could say I'm hanging in there. We need to step things up a little bit," He said, "Half of Tokyo just saw that plane go down. They're going to send out search crews."

"Alright, we'll be there in twenty-five, I think," She spoke to someone in the background, "Alright, Renji says we'll be there in twenty."

Ace nodded, stashing his phone once again. He nearly made it onto the island, splashing into waist deep water and having to slosh in the last dozen meters to the rocky beach. Cutting his parachute and dropping the straps, he scanned the distance, peering through the darkness and seeing nothing. Pulling his balaclava off, he pulled his own mask on, feeling much more comfortable with the familiar fabric on his face.

He found a foothold, and started to climb, hoping nothing else would go wrong.

* * *

"I think we got him."

Itori stood next to Uta on the beach, watching the fiery remains of the cargo aircraft drop through the sky, as sirens blared from inside the city. Uta dropped the missile launcher he'd just used, looking at Itori as she dropped her own launcher. They both wore their clown masks, but both knew the other was grinning.

"Wasn't it so sweet how Hinami called and asked us to help?" Itori said, watching the fiery death of the man who she'd tried, and failed, to turn into a toy. Noone could be allowed to scorn her like that. "Roma is gonna be pissed that she didn't get to have a little more fun with the American, though."

"Well, she can be pissed," Uta said calmly, turning to look at a pair of police officers running towards them, "Are you hungry?"

"Sure."

"Well," Uta swept his arms towards the weak men, kagune leaping towards them, "Ladies first."

* * *

Ace entered the little cove that housed the islands only dock by a grate he found already standing open.

"Finally," A man in a dark coat said, standing only a few meters away from him, "We've been waiting."

Two other figures, dressed in dark coats as well, jumped in front of the man, their kakugan and kagune manifesting as Ace's rinkaku went for a killing blow. They absorbed his flurry of blows, defending the third man.

"Now, now," The man in black said, "I only came here to talk."

Ace stopped for a moment, though he remained ready to continue his attacks.

"I've heard quite a bit about you, Mr. Hellhound," Ace noticed that the man's eyes seemed to lack pupils, and his lips were black. Not like he'd put black lipstick on… they seemed _stained_. "You seem to have become quite famous in such a short time… You have impressive credentials."

"What the hell do you want?" Ace said, looking past the men to see the piled up bodies of men and women in the uniform of the CCG. "What are you doing here?"

"I just wanted to extend an invitation to join our little organization," The man in black lifted his hands up, towards the two men with him, "We are always looking for talented Ghouls to join, and our benefits are far greater than you could get with any… other organization."

Ace relaxed slightly, and seemed to ponder what the man said, as the four of them stood there, only meters apart.

"What organization is this that I'd be joining?" Ace said, eyes gazing out from under a furrowed brow. "Would it be V?"

"I'm honored that you've heard of us." The other man said, smiling, "Though as an American Ghoul Hunter, you would know of us."

Ace controlled his facial expression, hiding the surprise he felt surge through him as the man in black revealed he knew who he was. This was a dangerous thing, and he couldn't allow himself to be tempted for even a moment. He put his hands behind his back, seeming to stand at a kind of attention.

"I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to turn you down," Ace said, smiling, "Though I thank you for the offer."

His rinkaku, extended only a tiny bit behind his back, grabbed a flashbang from his belt, splitting into two smaller tentacles to pull the pin. Then it tossed it over his shoulder, right between the man in blacks lackeys.

The world exploded into light and noise, Ace himself covered himself with his koukaku.


	14. Chapter 14

"You know he's going to be pissed when he finds out you came with us."

Hinami stood beside Touka, both of them with their masks in hand, at the bow of the boat they'd stolen, looking towards the dark shape of the island coming towards them. Renji was piloting the boat, standing like a silver-haired statue at the wheel. Irimi sat beside him, looking almost forlornly off into the darkness.

"I think he'll forgive me," Hinami said, smiling slightly, "But… What's going on with Brother? Why is he still with the CCG?"

Touka bit her lip, pondering what she was going to say. She sighed as she finally decided what to say.

"Kaneki is still… confused," Touka said carefully, "Haise Sasaki is still a facet of his personality, and so even though he's retrieved most of his memories… All of the ones he's made in the last three years are still there. He _cares_ about certain members of the CCG…" Touka wanted to spit, thinking of the woman Kaneki had the audacity to call 'Mom'. "I think it will just take time…"

"You're still seeing him, aren't you, Sister?" Hinami asked, looking at Touka even as she flushed slightly. "I've known for a long time, you know. Even back then… The way he glanced at you, spoke to you…"

Hinami trailed off as Touka put a hand on her shoulder, shaking her head.

"Please, Hinami… Not now."

She nodded, just as a _bang_ split the night from the direction of the island. Everyone in the boat braced themselves as Renji pushed the throttle to max, swerving the boat directly towards their target.

"Of _course_ he decides to not be sneaky," Touka said to herself, "Of course."

They flashed into the little cove, going far too fast to stop, and were thrown forward as the boat slammed into the dock. Touka, Irimi and Renji were prepared for the impact, Hinami was not, and slammed into the side of the boat, before landing in a heap on the dock. She'd smacked her head, and saw nothing but stars when she opened her eyes.

Someone landed beside her, nad as her eyes cleared she saw that it was Ace, looking down him with an enraged look on his face.

" _Why are you here, Hinami?"_ He yelled, batting away an attack from above him. Ace spun on his feet, dragging his opponent down with a flurry of his rinkaku. The black suited Ghoul slammed into the ground, struggling wildly. Hinami's eyes widened as the man seemed to split in half, his torso separating from his lower body in a welter of gore. Then he looked back at her. "Hinami, you need too-"

The _other_ man in black stabbed him in the back, the tip of his koukaku bursting out of Ace's chest. Hinami's eyes widened in horror, but Ace just looked at the Ghoul with disdain.

"Excuse me, I'm trying to have a conversation here." Ace's rinkaku shoved themselves into the man's guts, burrowing into his body until the man's eyes went glassy and he slumped, his koukaku disappearing from Ace's chest. "Gosh… Rude people these days… Now, why are you here?"

"I… I… I just wanted to come help you," Hinami said, looking up at Ace, "I don't want to be useless…"

"You aren't useless," Ace said, taking a knee. It almost seemed to Hinami that he was a different person, acting so professionally, "But I don't want you to get hurt. So… stay close."

The others were standing around now, but moved back when Ace stood back up, pulling a device from his pack and flipping a few switches on it.

"That should jam any outgoing signals. Let's go."

"Wha-" Touka began, but Ace was already bounding towards the open door that lead to the prison.

The others followed, even as alarms began to scream through the tunnel. A panel suddenly popped open on the wall, and the barrel of a weapon popped out, spurting bullets and fire. Ace's right arm koukaku expanded into a wide shield, sending the bullets ricocheting. Renji popped up behind him and fired a stream of shards into the weapon. The gun sputtered and let out a puff of smoke, then suddenly stopped firing. A few hundred more meters down the way, another popped out, and Ace and Renji repeated the process. In all, they destroyed four of the concealed guns, and burst out of the end door only a few seconds behind. The area they entered was like a usual jail cell block, but three stories tall and nearly a hundred meters across.

"Open fire!" A woman's voice ordered, and they were suddenly being hit by another hail of gunfire, and fire from ukaku Quinque. Dove's lined the catwalks all around, and were pouring fire into them, as they were forced to shelter behind the small support columns near the door.

 _Not as bad as I thought it would be._ Ace thought sardonically to himself. _I thought they'd have a heavy machine gun set up. Looks like we lucked out._

The sound of the heavy machine gun opening up was like bottled thunder, as it began to send rounds _through_ the concrete columns.

" _Shit!_ " Ace said, even as his kakuja began to manifest. The madness started to consume him, but he fought back against it. His mind locked onto his few memories with Hinami, and he held onto them as the storm of emotions hit him. He stepped out into the open, feeling the heavy machine gun bullets slamming into his koukaku armor.

He manifested an extra pair of rinkaku, and sent them spiraling up towards the pair of men manning the machine gun. They flinched backward from the attack, dropping the handle of the gun, so it was with no resistance that Ace snatched the machine gun from its mount, and dragged it towards him, its belts and belts of ammo dragging behind it.

" _I'll clear the way._ " Ace said, voice strained. _"Get ready to move_."

Even as small arms fire still spattered against his armor, he checked the machine gun. Ripping off the tripod mount, he checked that it wasn't jammed, before holding down the trigger, and beginning to sweep the different levels of Doves. He walked forward, firing from the hip, before gesturing with a nod of his head towards the door they needed to take to get to their targets.

"Go! Get what we came here for!"

Another group of Dove's set up another machine gun, and began to pour fire towards Ace's group. Hinami's koukaku expanded, covering them all as they made for the doorway, even as Ace redirected his fire onto that group. One tough-looking Dove stepped into it, his Quinque expanding into an umbrella-like shield, with a slot that the machine gun crew put the barrel of their gun into.

 _This_ machine gun crew was more effective than the previous one, and Ace was forced to manifest his shield-arms when bullets began to crack the armor over his chest. Four Doves, newly arrived by a small side door

"Comeon!" He heard Hinami scream from the doorway.

"Just _go!_ " Ace responded, turning to confront this new threat, even as bullets continued to pound into his arm-shields. "I'll be fine!"

Dropping the machine gun in his hands, he leapt to the side, rolling over his shoulders and coming up several meters away with a pair of smoke grenades in each hand, the pins clattering to the ground behind him. He threw them towards the charging quartet of Quinque wielding Doves, and then began dodging the variety of weapons they wielded. An axe-like weapon took a small gouge out of one of his legs, before he kicked it, and its owner, into the widening cloud of smoke. The remaining trio pushed him backwards against the wall, which just incidentally brought him near to a pair of cells.

 _Perfect_. Ace thought, as his rinkaku slashed out, tearing the heavy duty locks on the heavy Quinque lined doors off, throwing them at the nearest pair of Doves. Seeing what his goal was, the two dodged and attacked, going for a killing blow, hoping to slice into the thinner armor over his joints. Ace's rinkaku reversed their course, whipping by his waist in a flash and stabbing into the two Doves standing to his right, they barely penetrated more than a few inches before Ace withdrew them.

"Shit… You really think that's gonna hurt us?" One of the grizzled Investigators said, touching the blood seeping from the circular wound. "I've been hurt worse by a damn _kitten._ "

"Ah, but kittens don't have grenades." Ace said, smiling, holding up the two pins from the grenades he'd just shoved into these two Doves torso. "Buh-bye."

The man who'd spoken looked down in horror, hand reaching for the wound, just as the grenades exploded and seemed to turn the men inside out. The remaining man took up a defensive stance, but was shaking like a leaf in the wind. Ace just watched him for a moment, before the two doors behind him opened, and a pair of skinny, malnourished looking Ghouls stumbled out into the light, shielding their eyes. They were clearly mad, but not mad enough to attack Ace, who was closer. Instead, they turned their black eyes on the Dove, charging him. While they were busy with him, Ace went along and opened all of the cells on that side of the cell block.

That taken care of, Ace climbed up on of the column, using his rinkaku to scale on of the column. The machine gun immediately started to hit him, but he struck back, rinkaku striking like a snake. It wrapped around the superhot barrel, steaming slightly, before bending it upwards, making it totally useless as a weapon. The three Doves manning it, including the one with the koukaku Quinque, tried to run, but he cut them down before they made it two steps. Turning to look, he saw the two dozen Ghouls below, most looking up at him through the smoke. He threw the bodies of the three Dove's to the ground, and watched as they were torn to shreds in a handful of heartbeats, devoured. Then they looked at him once again.

"Hey, go and break some shit," Ace said, pointing towards the open door through which the four Doves had come, "And there's probably some more Doves through that door."

They, almost as one, looked from Ace to the door, then back again. One Ghoul took off towards the door, not wanting to fuck with the half-kakuja who'd freed him. Soon enough, they all filtered through the door, and the sound of gunfire echoed back through it.

Ace stripped the machine gun nearest him of ammo, throwing the belts over his armored shoulders, and dropped down below, collecting the machine gun he'd dropped earlier. Taking a moment, he reloaded it, holding it as he went to the door the others had gone down. He entered the stairwell, and dropped down to the bottom, where he remembered the most important Ghoul prisoners were held. He found the scene of a battle there, but luckily, none of his friends were among the bodies strewn across the floor.

Stepping through another doorway, he found Irimi leaning against a wall, one of her arms bloody. She looked up at him, and tossed her head towards another doorway.

"What happened?"

"Too many Doves. The others went ahead, I stayed to finish them off." She said, standing slowly. "You?"

"I released all of the Ghouls in the cell block."

Irimi looked at him with a hint of respect, mingled with a bit of disgust. Ace just shrugged at her expression, before jacking a round into the machine gun. Without another word, the two of them went through the next doorway, with Ace kicking the door open and scanning the small room on the other side with the machine gun. Irimi made a small sound of displeasure.

"What?"

"Why do you like guns so much?" She asked. "No other Ghoul I know or have heard of has used them, except years and years ago when I was younger. That Ghoul always used guns."

Ace advanced into the room, clearly a processing room of some kind, and found himself presented with two choices. His sense of smell told him to take the door on the right, and so he headed towards it.

"Was that Ghoul the Red Guillotine?" Ace asked, remembering the nickname his mother had apparently earned during her time here. When Irimi nodded, Ace shrugged again. "That's my Mom, so I guess you could say it's in my blood. And anyways, using guns is part of my training as a Ghoul Hunter."

The second door opened as Ace put his boot into it, and he walked into a strange and confused scene. Renji and Hinami were watching an emaciated man, who Ace recognized almost immediately as Jack the Scythe, tear and devour chunks of flesh from a still living Dove. The young woman, who couldn't have been more than Ace's own age, screamed in pain as the man took bites from her leg.

Ace approached the Ghoul, dropping the barrel of his machine gun. A single shot sounded, as he put the young Dove out of her misery.

"Hey, you bastard," Jack said, looking up with anger painted across his expression, "I was eating that! Now it won't taste as good!"

Ace's foot lashed out, catching the older man across the jaw. His head snapped around painfully, as he fell backwards, flat on his back.

"We're here to get you out," Ace said coldly, "Now, you can either stop fucking around, and come willingly, or I'm going to chop off your limbs and we'll carry you out of here."

"Who sent you?" The man looked up, rubbing his cheek.

"Aogiri Tree."

Jack grinned.

"Excellent, I sure am glad I joined up with that lot." He extended a hand to Ace, "Jack the Scythe, pleasure to meet you."

Ace turned away without acknowledging Jacks hand, nodding to Renji.

"Where's Touka?"

"Down there," Renji said, pointing to a stairwell, "That's where Ayato is, at least according to _him_."

Ace headed towards the doorway, peeking his head downwards. He took a small package from his pack, and arranged it next to the entrance of the stairwell. Then he peeked his head in again, listening. When he didn't hear anything, he looked back at Renji.

"Take him and head upstairs," He gestured at Jack, "Head for the dock and steal another of those boats. Before you do, though, you should really let all of our fellow Ghouls out of their cells."

Then Ace began trotting down the stairs, periodically stopping and listening for any signs of life. He nearly jumped out of his own skin when someone put their hand on his shoulder. Whipping around, he saw that it was Hinami.

"I wanted to come with you…"

Ace gave her a pained look. They were going into the lowest portion of Yomi, where only the most dangerous Ghouls, and the strongest defenses, were located.

"Fine," He said quietly, seeing no other choice, "Just stay behind me."

He resumed his trot, reaching the bottom of the stairs and finding a thick metal door, almost like a bank safe, standing open. Inside, there was only darkness.

"Stay here." Ace told Hinami, and then stepped into the darkness, still unable to see even with his enhanced vision. Now he wished he'd have asked that pilot to grab him a few flares as well. As he stepped into what he thought was the center of the room, a _thump_ noise barely preceded something hitting him from his left, as a vague shape moved from his right. Whatever hit him wrapped around him like a net, causing him to nearly drop the gun in his hands. Instead, he fell backwards, feeling a slight pressure as something undeniably sharp split the air bare millimeters from his face. His rinkaku lashed out from his back, stabbing into and through the figure who'd attacked him, as the lights flickered on above them.

There were five other figures in the room, two of them laid out on the floor wrapped with some kind of rope. It was Touka and her brother, their unconscious bodies slumped against one another. The next was a young man with a sword Quinque, who noisily died as Ace shredded him. Of the other two, one was short, ugly, and with skin covered in numerous skin grafts, so much so that he looked like a jigsaw puzzle. The remaining figure had black hair pulled back into a ponytail, and reminded Ace immensely of Ken Kaneki.

Ace broke the strange, very tough ropes binding him with a flexing of his shoulders, and leveled his gun at the short man.

"I'm Shiki-" The Dove began to say, but stopped and dodged out of the way when Ace ripped out a burst of machine gun fire. "Ah, so this is the ever professional Hellhound, the American agent. How interesting."

The patchwork Dove, Shiki, dove out of the way of another burst of fire, before his partner could move into place to defend him. That Dove pulled two small canisters from a pocket, tossing them at Ace. Ace moved forward, confident of his koukaku's ability to protect him, firing from the hip once more. Then his body shuddered, and his kagune seemed to harden and become nearly useless.

"Ah… I guess this is it for you, Hellhound," Shiki said, smiling like a demon, "That's CRC gas… Looks like you've lost your strongest weapons."

Ace gagged slightly, even as he stepped back out of the cloud. His kakuja armor collapsed, disappearing like dust on the wind, and he stood there, nearly defenseless, as Shiki readied his Quinque once again. Ace slumped onto his hands and knees. He heard the capture Quinque fire, but didn't feel it hit him, and noticed a new presence behind him.

Hinami's koukaku embraced both of them like a venus flytrap, protecting them from the follow on attacks by Shiki's partner.

"Ace… Let's just get Touka and Ayato and get out of here," She said, seeming to falter for a minute as the CRC gas touched her, "I… I can't hold this for much longer with that gas…"

Anger lashed through Ace like a knife, seeing Hinami in even that mild discomfort. Fighting through his disorientation, he readied himself for when he koukaku finally failed. When it did, he leapt straight upwards, a prodigious leap even in his gas weakened state, and barely missed being cut in half by Shiki's partner. Ace kicked the man in the face, sending them both tumbling through the air, though Ace came out of it in a better position, as he landed right next to Shiki, and the man didn't seem to have any kind of weapon. He dove out of the way, a graceful shoulder roll from such a fat little man, and came up holding Touka, a hidden knife held to her throat. His partner seemed to be unconscious, having landed awkwardly on his head.

"Drop the gun," He said, nearly laughing, "Or your friend is going to need to see a doctor."

 _Little bastard…_

Ace dropped the machine gun, letting it clatter to the floor along with the remaining belts of ammo he had festooned across his body.

"Good, good," The little man said, letting his hostage drop slightly, as his smile grew once again, "I never thought it could be so easy to take the teeth out of a hound."

His smile remained, even as Ace's hand flashed behind his back, and came up with the pistol he always had hidden there. His shot wasn't exactly _clean_ , since it went through Shiki's eye socket instead of the center of his forehead, but it wasn't horrible. The other man slumped to the ground, the knife slipping from his hand and away from Touka's throat.

" _No!_ " Shiki's partner screamed, Quinque stabbing through Ace's shoulder and into his chest. " _Bastard!"_

Ace pivoted with the blade inside him, grunting slightly as it opened the wound, but the movement ripped the weapon from the unfortunate Doves hands. His teeth bit into the Dove's arm, ripping through the heavy coat he wore. Ace tore a chunk from the meat of the man's bicep, swallowing it and feeling suddenly far, far better than he had a moment before.

With renewed strength, he broke the other man's arms, then kicked him into the wall, where he lay lifelessly. Ace quickly turned and saw Hinami laying on the ground, the CRC gas having been too much for her.

Something grabbed his ankle, and he looked down to see Shiki slice his little knife through part of his ankle, the remains of his eye dripping onto the ground.

"Fucking Ghoul trash… I'm… Going to… chop you… up."

Ace shot him three more times, this time making sure to put it dead center through the fat little Doves forehead.


	15. Chapter 15

Ace let out a breath he thought he'd been holding for a few minutes, as the Dove slid off his leg.

"Stupid Dove." He said under his breath, pulling the Quinque knife out of his ankle and using it to cut the Quinque bindings holding Touka and her brother. Slapping Touka's face lightly, he was able to rouse her, "Hey… Hey, wake up. I'm not carrying all of you out of here, damn it."

"Let me…" Touka said sleepily, eyes barely open, but then her eyes widened and she sat up. "What the hell happened? I grabbed Ayato and then…"

"CRC gas… You got ambushed," Ace said, tapping Touka's brother with the toe of his shoe, "Now comeon, we've taken way too long."

Ace went over to Hinami, rousing her with a few tender touches. Then, once Ayato was able to stand and walk, they proceeded up the stairs. Ace once again had the machine gun in his hands, and he led the way up the stairs. Renji waited for them at the top of the stairs with Irimi, Jack the Scythe nowhere to be seen.

"He stole the only working boat." Was all Renji said in response to Ace's questioning look. Ace was dumbstruck.

"Whatever, fuck that guy." Ace said, "Now how are _we_ going to get out of here?"

Irimi pointed upwards, and Ace wiped his brow, knowing that things were starting to deteriorate.

"Alright, let's head upstairs and hope we can find some way off this damned island."

They rushed up the stairs, having to step over the bodies of escaped Ghouls and Doves alike. At one point, Ace reached down and tore a piece of flesh from a body, hastily gobbling it up. Looking at the others, he said.

"I'd suggest you do the same… Quickly."

Though they were slightly taken aback at the nonchalance with which he had done it, each of them ripped and tore a piece from the body nearest them. Hinami, Touka and Irimi seemed the most uncomfortable, and Hinami especially wouldn't eat until everyone, including Ace, averted their eyes.

Then they made their way the rest of the way upwards, stepping through the remains of a dozen battles, spent bullet casings and bodies littering the ground. A few Ghouls remained, scavenging the remains of the bodies, but it seemed like most were above them, trying to escape. Those who remained watched the group of Ghouls cautiously from afar. When they finally stepped into the very early morning air, the smell of blood and gunpowder nearly overwhelmed Ace, and he dropped to a knee.

 _That damned CRC gas_ … He thought, as he took in a few deep breaths. The adrenaline that had been pumping through his body for the last half hour was finally starting to wear off, and his muscles felt tortured from using his kakuja.

"Let's head for that landing field we saw on the map," Ace said, "Maybe we can find a copter or something."

Touka gave him a skeptical look.

"Can you fly one?"

Ace shook his head.

"No, but I can sure as hell crash one."

* * *

"Your hunch was right, Mado, Yomi isn't answering any of our requests for communication."

Akira nodded at the First class Investigator who spoke to her, unsure of the strength of her own voice even with the ear muffs and microphone. The noise from the helicopter she rode in was deafening, and with three others in close proximity, whipping between the skyscrapers of Tokyo, no one could be heard unless they yelled.

She'd listened to everything Amon had to say, and more. Something had come over her, and she'd found herself touching him, running her fingers through his hair…

 _Stop thinking about that._ Akira pushed those thoughts away, partially disgusted with herself. _It was wrong, Father would be appalled…_

But Akira had taken Amon's advice, and tried to phone Yomi Prison herself, and when she'd gotten no answer, she'd called Itsuki and explained her 'hunch'. He'd immediately tried to call Yomi as well, and when he hadn't gotten an answer, he'd sent out a rally signal to the nearest Investigators. Akira had turned around form her phone call to find Amon gone, vanished seemingly into thin air. Tears had run from her eyes as she'd quickly dressed, dashing down the street to a waiting car that rushed her to the Main Office, where three commandeered Defense Forces helicopters circled, waiting for a fourth to finish loading. There were numerous Investigators who tried to join the operation, but were sent away due to their injuries from the assault on the Tsukiyama manor.

Now, she sat with thirteen other Investigators, wearing hot and heavy body armor, bouncing the attaché case holding her Quinque on one knee. The Japanese Self-Defense Force pilots and gunners looked at the Doves on their choppers wearily, but seemed to be competent enough.

"Looks like there are at least a hundred figures loose on the island," The pilot said as they raced over the bay towards Yomi's island, "Thermal sensors still aren't very clear at this range. We'll set down in that clear spot there."

The machine gunner at the front of the compartment started firing, and everyone in the compartment who hadn't already put their helmets on to slap the ugly, uncomfortable things on. Akira already had hers secured, and just tightened her hands on her Quinque, as the chopper dropped through the air, causing her stomach to spasm.

"Go!"

Akira was the first out of the rear hatch, and Fueguchi One flashed into her hand as the first of the emaciated, wild Ghouls attacked her. Fueguchi One struck like lightning, and the heads of two of her attackers toppled to the sand beneath her boots. All around her, machine guns and rifles barked, and a helicopter crashed to the ground, cockpit riddled with bullet holes and aflame. Ghouls swarmed the wreckage, but Chuu Hachikawa rallied the survivors of the crash and fought his way through them.

"Head for the prison entrance!" Akira yelled at the men and women under her command, twirling with her Quinque and beginning to clear a path through the horde of Ghouls. Ahead of her, a figure appeared from the treeline, carrying a machine gun against its hip. In the darkness, she couldn't see who it was, but then the figure opened fire, and in the flash of the gunfire she saw that familiar mask.

"Fall back on Hachikawa's squad!" She ordered her men, as Hellhound fired a burst into the cockpit of the helicopter she'd just exited, riddling the pilot and copilot with bullets. Akira immediately retreated with her squad, yelling into her headset for backup. After what Amon had told her about who Hellhound _truly_ was, and his pedigree… She didn't want to go up against him again, not without significant backup.

One of the helicopter machine gunners noticed the figure firing at the Doves, and began to pepper him with return fire. The Ghoul just walked through it, continuing to lay down a wall of lead, as he headed for…

 _Shit, he's heading for the helicopter._ She said, just as Hellhound seemed to run out of ammunition, and dropped the heavy weapon, charging for the now unmanned helicopter. Akira whipped Fueghuchi One towards him, extending it to its maximum length. Hellhound slid underneath the strike, but he was nearly knocked off his feet by the backlash. Still, though, he made it to the helicopter, climbing through the rear hatch.

A pair of Ghouls attacked her, their kagune stabbing in towards her throat. Her Quinque snapped back with a slight flick of her wrist, and chopped the two into tiny bits. But their attack had slowed her just enough, and she was forced to watch uselessly as Hellhound threw himself into the pilots seat and awkwardly lifted the helicopter off the ground, then flying it into the distance.

* * *

"Shit, shit, shit, shit."

Ace kept up a steady stream of invective as the helicopter flashed warnings at him and sounded sirens in the cockpit that he had no idea what they meant. The rest of the group was waiting near the landing pad, and they stepped out from their hiding places when they saw him coming in for a landing. Lowering the collective control that he held in his left hand, he set the helicopter down, _hard_ and heard something snap and break in the rear of the helicopter.

 _But at least the damned thing stopped screaming at me._ He thought, as Renji, Irimi, Touka, Ayato and Hinami clambered aboard.

"What the hell, you just broke one of the landing gear!" Touka yelled over the noise, but Ace just ignored her, as he pulled the collective up roughly, and tilted the control stick forward. The nose scraped the ground, but then the helicopter lifted off.

"Hold on!" He yelled, angling towards the Tokyo side of the bay, even as rifle fire began to hit the helicopter. _Another_ alarm sounded, and the helicopter lurched slightly.

"Ace, there's smoke coming out of the back!" Someone, Ace couldn't tell who, yelled.

The rifle fire stopped, as the helicopter made it out over the bay, and Ace unprofessionally maneuvered it on a course towards a small park he'd seen a few times.

"Alright, we're gonna have to jump when we get close to land!" He screamed over the noise, as a noise like clashing and disintegrating gears made the helicopter shudder. They were barely thirty feet off the ground, traveling pretty fast, and the beach seemed to be at least a half kilometer away. Ace just had to hold it for a little longer… "Alright, go!"

Ace cut himself out of the restraints, before turning and sprinting for the open rear door. He followed Renji out into the air, and fell into water that was maybe ten feet deep. Ace touched the silty bottom, and pushed off, breaching the surface near Touka.

"Nishiki is right, you _are_ crazy!" She said, even as their group began to paddle hard for the nearby shore.

Their recently stolen helicopter kept flying, as if some supernatural force was still piloting it, until it slammed into the nearby forest, sending a gust of flames up into the air.

* * *

"Listen, don't talk about how dangerous _your_ night was, I got shot out of the fucking _sky_."

Ace was flustered. He sat at one of the tables in :Re's dining room, glaring at the others of his group, who looked back at him with accusatory expressions.

"Not only that, but I also had to jump out of not one, but _two_ perfectly good aircraft," He growled, before holding up an index finger and shrugging slightly, "Now, admittedly, one of those was in flames... But that's beside the point! We got what we wanted! Touka, you got your brother back," Ace looked at Ayato, as the other young man met his glare, "And I haven't even heard a fucking thank you from you."

"And you aren't going to get one, either." The other Ghoul responded.

"Well," Ace said, kakugan appearing, "Maybe I should drag your ass back to that damned CCG."

Ayato snarled, his own kakugan flashing.

"I'd like to see you try, cocksucker."

Ace was out of his seat before he could even think about it, and was just about to throttle Ayato when Hinami stepped between them.

"Hey! Stop it both of you!" She said, pushing Ace back slightly. "We've all had a long night, and I think we should maybe take the day off."

Ayato continued to glare at Ace, but Ace subsided slightly, looking down at Hinami.

"I've got better shit to do then hang out with you pussy's," He said, heading for the door, but Touka stepped into his way, "Get out of my way, Touka."

But Touka didn't move, even when Ayato moved as if he was going to hit her.

"I'm not moving, Ayato." She said, "You can't return to Aogiri Tree. Not until we talk."

"I don't have anything to say to you."

The front door opened behind Touka, and Kaneki stepped in, wearing a hoodie. He took in the scene in an instant, saying.

"It seems like you all have been busy." He said sarcastically, looking at Ace, before smiling at Touka. "I think Touka and I need to have a chat. Privately, please."

Ace just wanted to go home now, and tugged on Hinami's sleeve, nodding towards the backdoor. After saying curt goodbyes, they left and headed towards his little apartment. Hinami took his arm once they were out of view of the store, leaning her head against his shoulder.

"Princess, I'm sorry for putting you into danger," Ace said wearily, "But I…"

"I know, I shouldn't have come," She responded testily, "But… If we're a… thing, then I'm notgoing to be left behind, like some kind of trophy wife."

"I just don't want you to get hurt."

"And I don't want you to get hurt," Hinami responded, touching his shoulder where he'd been impaled during the ambush in the lower part of Yomi, "But you get hurt. Being who we are… what we are, we're always going to get hurt."

Ace stopped, looking down at Hinami.

"Not if you were to goto America," He put his hands on her shoulders, looking directly into her eyes, "I can get you a fake passport… The FBGI makes allowances for… significant others. You could live with my sister in Chicago, at least until I get back."

Hinami looked up at him, eyes widening slightly in surprise. Then she shook her head.

"I can't leave my family here, Ace." Then she looked down slightly, a bit shamefacedly, "But… That sounds nice. It really does." Then she looked at him with a hint of suspicion, "You never told me you had a sister!"

Ace laughed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah, my sister Dione… She's a few years older than me." Ace smiled, "She got the smart genes in the family, so she's trying to finish her Master's degree in Health Sciences. My cousins are all pretty jealous."

"Cousins…?" Hinami said, "How… How big is your family?"

Ace took a moment, counting on his fingers.

"Well, I have like four uncles and an aunt… And most of them have two or three kids. Except for Aunt Aphrodite, she's never really settled down." Ace's smile died slightly, "I… I guess it'd be hard to have a big family here in Tokyo."

Hinami didn't say anything more as they walked slightly apart the rest of the way to their apartment. Ace let her have the first use of the bathroom, and flopped down onto the couch, insanely tired even as his mind raced.

 _Who shot down that plane?_ He thought, going through a list of suspects. _V could have done it, since they were already present. But it didn't seem like they knew about it. The CCG could have done it, but then why weren't they better prepared for us when we attacked. Even Aogiri Tree could be suspects… But then why would they have even asked me in the first place? Some kind of weird ritual? And not to mention that none of those groups could have known of his plans…_

That left only the people who'd been with him who could have leaked what he was doing. Hinami gave him part of his answer when she came out of the bathroom, wrapping a towel around her hair.

"I really wish Miss Itori or Uta could have helped us," She said, "But they said they wouldn't be able to, something came up in their Ward."

Ace looked at her, suddenly interested in more than how beautiful she looked.

"What did you tell them?" Ace asked, rolling over on the couch so that he was on his belly.

"Just the basics, like what time we were supposed to meet, and an outline of the plan."

"Ah…" Ace said, the pieces falling into place. He'd have to look into things a little more, but it was definitely suspicious. Getting up, he went into the shower and stripped, taking a moment to look at himself in the mirror. The face that gazed back at him was totally different than the one that had arrived here only a few months ago. It was… thinner, than it had been, but only because all of the baby fat he'd carried through his teenage years had melted away. His body was more toned than it had ever been… But the faint bags under his eyes gave every indication that he was exhausted. "I look like shit…"

He took a long, hot shower, that ended very quickly as the water went from boiling to freezing in a heartbeat. Scrambling out, he toweled off, and pulled on a pair of shorts and a sleeveless t-shirt with a big American flag on it.

Hinami rolled her eyes when she saw the shirt, something she usually did, but turned her eyes back to the TV. Video footage, it looked like it was taken from a cellphone, showed the pair of missiles striking the plane.

"As you can see, the missiles, likely fired by an anti-American terrorist group," The reporter said, "Were shot from this section of the bay."

She circled a spot on the map, and Ace memorized its name and location, even as he slid an arm around Hinami's back. Then a little further around… then a little further.

"Hey! Stop that!" Hinami said, swatting at his hand as it pinched her ribcage. "Not now… I want to watch this."

News of the prison break played right after the shootdown footage, but this didn't have any grainy, horrible video to go with it. Just a standard response that the CCG was not open to any questions about the events in Tokyo Bay. Hinami looked at him a moment later, when a commercial for a game show came on.

"What's wrong?"

Ace didn't want to tell her about it, so he just smiled.

"You're far, far too beautiful, Princess." He pressed his lips to hers, before pulling away after a moment. "Your face could truly launch a thousand ships, and your smile is so bright it makes the sun itself seem dull."

Hinami snorted.

"You're kind of lame." She said, kissing him again. "Now, what are we going to do? Touka asked me to come in around three to help with dinner rush."

"I can… think of a few things," Ace said, smiling, but Hinami gave him a look, and his smiled dropped down in intensity slightly, "Okay, okay. Then how about we just…"

His cellphone rang, and he saw that it was Touka.

"Turn on the news, right now." She said without preamble. Ace handed the phone over to Hinami, even as he switched to TV JAPAN, the 24/7 news channel. It was a scene from the United Nations General Assembly.

"In a wild turn of events today, President of the United States of America Adam Johnson addressed the General Assembly of the United Nations," The announcer said, "Here is the full speech."

"Thank you good people of the Assembly," The tall, dark skinned man said, "I have come to address you because of a terrible occurrence of only a few weeks ago. You all now know of the attack upon our Embassy by Ghouls in Japan." A murmur went up from the assembled men and women, "But I now have evidence, retrieved from that Embassy, that allows me to lay down this accusation with certainty."

"It was not Ghouls that attacked us, but man," The President said with an eloquence that moved even Ace, "In the form of the Commission of Counter Ghoul, an organization that this assembly itself supports, and has allowed to spread worldwide. If you check your monitors, you can see a portion of this horrific video."

Behind him on the big screen, a scene from the Embassy building, with men and women in Dove uniforms slaughtering other men and women in business attire. Helpless men and women. Ace stood suddenly, watching that video that he and Angela had fought so hard for.

"Only the courageous actions of a pair of agents of our own organization, the Federal Bureau of Ghoul Investigation, allowed this information to come to light." The assembly looked on in horrified silence as the video continued to play, showing an agent viciously cut down the Ambassador himself with a Quinque, "The Commission of Counter Ghoul has grown in power, far, far outside of what it should have. It has killed innocent citizens around the world, for the sole fact that they are Ghouls. A fact that they, as science agrees, had no part in choosing."

"That is why," The President interlaced his fingers on the podium in front of him, as video continued to play, "I will go before the Congress of the United States before the end of this day, and ask them to list the CCG as a terrorist organization, and to declare war upon said organization… And it is very likely that I shall get that declaration." The chamber erupted into bedlam, with numerous nations, mostly the ones that had allied with the CCG. It was because of this ruckus that Ace nearly didn't hear the last words the President spoke, "I… And all of you, should not allow evil to fester among us, even if that evil is there to combat a perceived evil. Thank you for your time. I hereby cede the podium."

Ace dropped the remote, blinking hard, unable to believe his ears. Hinami said goodbye to Touka, and touched Ace's shoulder.

"What… What are you going to do?"

"I guess… I'm going to war." Ace said, sitting back down on the couch, looking at Hinami, "Things are… going to get bad now."

He really didn't know what the future held for him. Ace just knew that it wasn't going to be fun.


	16. Chapter 16

Ace sat at the counter of :Re, enjoying a quick lunchtime break as they experienced a brief lull during the day. Music played on the radio, and he soon found himself tapping his foot to the beat, even as he hung his head over his coffee. Too much was running through his mind, as he tried to puzzle out _why_ Uta and Itori had tried to murder him.

He'd nearly had to torture the only man with a working security camera in the area to get the video, impersonating a Ghoul Investigator, but gotten it he had. And seeing the pair of 'friends' walk by with bags that looked to contain Surface-to-air missile launchers really put the icing on the cake. Ace hadn't told anyone else yet, afraid of the consequences of what that betrayal meant. And his other investigations had been less than fruitful, as well. Both Uta and Itori had left the city, with Itori leaving behind some little punk Ghoul to run the bar…

"Customers!" Touka said from behind the bar, swiftly putting her phone away. Ace saw the flutter of pink hair above a smartly attended suit and bolted for the backdoor before the group of Doves made it inside.

"Ah, it smells excellent in here!" Hairu Ihei said, from where she led the four other female Doves, including Akira Madi, each with an attaché case in their hands. They took a look around the place, then took a seat at the table. As Ace stood in the backroom with the door cracked, he listened to Touka approach and take their order. Then she quietly slipped into the back room after handing Nishiki the order sheet.

"Fucking Doves…" She said, grimacing. Ace followed her out the back door, and had to dodge out of the way when she kicked a garbage can back towards him.

"Of all the days that _that_ group could come in, it had to be _today_ , when I was here," Touka growled at Ace, "It couldn't be when Renji was here…"

Ace knew why she was pissed, and simply nodded in agreement as she continued to vent.

"It would probably be for the best if they didn't see me." Ace said, "Even with a mask on…"

Touka shrugged, before shoo-ing him away.

"Call Renji and tell him to come in. But head home."

Pulling out his phone, he called the other co-manager, apprising him of the situation, and then headed down the backalley. But he didn't head back to his apartment, where he knew Hinami was likely getting ready for her shift in a few hours. Instead, he pulled out his phone once again, and called Agent Control.

"Good Afternoon, Agent Lincoln," The familiar voice said, once he'd gotten through the security measures, "How can I help you?"

"What's the situation on the outside?"

"Poor, Agent." Control said, "Several bases have been attacked. Counterattacks have causes commensurate damage."

Ace nodded, leaning against a wall.

"Is there a possibility of resupply?"

"Negative, no assets capable of delivery in the area," Agent Control said, "You're on your own. Good luck."

The signal cut out, and Ace sighed in exasperation. Things must be pretty bad if they couldn't get any kind of resupply mission to him. But he had ideas of how he could go about retrieving what he needed, and resolved to give Zardoz a call at some point to get a few of those ideas. For now, he could procure what he needed by simply stealing it…

"Hey, where are you?" Hinami asked when she called him, having come in from her shift and finding out that he hadn't made it back to their apartment.

"Out and about, looking into a couple things," Ace said, keeping his voice low. He didn't feel like having to deal with anymore residents of the 24th, the bodies of a dozen ravenous Ghouls lying still warm behind him, "Why? Whatsup?"

"One of our friends is apparently being attacked by the CCG, Irimi heard through a friend that they're surrounding a building nearby." Hinami paused, "The Lunar Eclipse Building in the 8th Ward. Touka and everyone is getting ready to head out, to see if we can help."

If Ace had his bearings right, he was only about a mile from the 8th Ward, and it wouldn't be too hard to find the Doves. But first…

"Alright, I'm heading there now. Stay in touch."

Heading upwards, he found his target after climbing out of a manhole in an alley. Ace would never understand why the CCG would keep lightly guarded Armories around the city, stocked with JSDF weaponry… Ace pulled his mask on, and moved towards the inconspicuous doorway. Six low ranking Ghoul Investigators sat inside the foyer of the building, looking bored. Some played cards, some stared down at their cellphone screens… But all looked up as he came through the unlocked front door.

 _Security should have been more of a concern…_ Ace thought, as his rinkaku exploded from his back impaling a nearby female Dove. He tore through the six before they even had a chance to draw a weapon, and he took a moment to feed, knowing he'd likely need the strength.

"Hey guys, what was that…" Another female Dove came out of what had to be the bathroom, and froze, eyes full of fright. Ace was on her without any hesitation, hand going around the young woman's throat.

"If you want to live," Ace whispered harshly, his mask doing a good job of distorting his words, "You'll let me into the armory."

"N-N-never!" The woman shook in his grasp, and he could have sworn that she wet herself. But her voice seemed resolute to not give in.

A tentacle shot through the top of her boot, burying itself into the floor beneath.

"You _will_ let me into the armory."

She acquiesced only after he'd impaled her other foot, tapping the code into the heavy metal door on the other side. Ace slammed her against the far wall with enough force to incapacitate her, leaving her moaning on the floor. Inside was a treasure trove of weaponry, including a few of the familiar attaché cases. Finding a nearby case of explosives, Ace pilfered it, putting it into a heavy rucksack. He threw the detonators for said explosives in another pack, and then began to fill a third pack with ammunition for a large rifle he grabbed off the wall.

Back in the alleyway, and now encumbered by a couple of hundred pounds of explosives and ammo, Ace used his rinkaku to force the lock of one of the dead Investigators vehicles. He taped a dozen blocks of C4 to the floor of the SUV's trunk, before sliding a pack of grenades between the blocks, then wired them to be wirelessly detonated. Going back into the armory, he grabbed the unconscious woman and the limp body of one of her deceased allies, and propped them up in the drivers and passenger seat of the SUV. Having another idea, he found the least damaged CCG overcoat and pulled it on over his 'work' clothes.

Getting into the seat behind the unconscious woman, he used his rinkaku to start the car, and began to drive the vehicle down the lightly populated streets. No civilians batted an eye as the SUV roared down the streets, its emergency lights flashing. Nor did they notice when the lights switched off as Ace neared the area that Hinami had told him about.

"Hey, woman…" He said briskly, slapping the female Doves cheeks. "Wake up, your allies are up ahead."

Ace put the vehicle in park with his rinkaku, and then stepped out, his three packs securely strapped across his back, and his rifle in one hand. Stepping into an alleyway, he scaled an apartment complex facing the Lunar Eclipse Building. He sent Touka a text, telling her to wait for him to start, and then lay down on top of a rusted air conditioning unit, readying his pilfered rifle. Hundreds of Doves swarmed about, and the muzzle flashes of weapons going off could be seen throughout the glass-faced building. Several helicopters buzzed about, Ace noticing the machine guns hanging out of their windows.

When next he caught sight of the SUV, it was driving rapidly towards one of the roadblocks set up near the front of the. The Doves manning it were clearly unsure of what to make of the oncoming vehicle and the half-crazed woman inside. Much to Ace's delight, the woman was so delirious with fear that she slammed through the barricade, the other Doves opened fire with rifles and handguns even as they leapt out of the way.

Watching all of this through his scope, he pulled the detonator out of his pocket, flicking open the protective cover on its top. As the other Doves began to approach, Ace hit the switch. The explosion enveloped only the handful of Doves who had been within reach of the car, but the shrapnel from the cars frame blast far past it. It cut a swath of destruction through the assembled troops, a swatch into which Ace began to rain down fire with his rifle.

Taking a breath, he laid the scope in on the face of one man, who had already been injured by the explosion. It took him three shots, but he finally drove the bullet through his neck, alerting the other surviving Doves of his position. Ace poured shot after shot into the group in front of the L.E building, until the sound of rotor blades began to grow louder in his ears.

 _Shit_ … He cursed to himself as he had to dodge out of the way of a burst of machine gun fire. The helicopter dropped down towards him, coming even with the roof as the gunner fired again. Ace grunted in pain, his koukaku covering him just slightly too late to stop a single bullet from piercing his shoulder. But his body healed the wound quickly, and Ace found himself sprinting towards the open hatch of the helicopter, his shields covering most of his upper body. Numerous bullets slammed into him, and a few were able to slip through the cracks, but as he reached the edge of the building's roof, he leapt.

Using his rinkaku to grab onto the machine gun, Ace pulled himself inside, dispatching the terrified machine gunner with a brutality that even Ace didn't think he had in him. His rifle came up, and blew through back of the pilot's helmet. The helicopter lurched in mid-air, beginning to nose over as the pilot slumped forward against the control yoke.

 _Oh, perfect._ Ace thought, as he saw where the helicopters death dive was taking him. _Next stop, the L.E. Building._

He leapt from the doomed vehicle seconds before it crashed into the L.E. Building, its machine gun gripped tightly by a pair of his rinkaku. Ace smashed through a window on the upper floor of the L.E. Building, directly into the midst of a group of Doves.

"Well, hello there." Ace said, smiling at his luck. The machine gun gripped by his rinkaku began to fire, even as he fired the few remaining rounds from his rifle. Discarding the spent rifle, he continued to tear through the rounds from the machine gun. Ace's shields came into play, as he smashed a quinque out of a Doves hands, kicking the man in the center of the chest and feeling a satisfying _squish_ as the force of the blow collapsed his ribcage. Seeing the slaughter, several Investigators who had been rushing to back up their allies began to flee.

Ace advanced after the rapidly retreating Doves, squeezing off long bursts of gunfire in their direction.

* * *

"Associate Special Class Mado, the Hellhound has been sighted on the 14th floor!"

The First Class investigator who had reported to her looked terrified, and even she felt a slight tremor at the thought of facing the damned Hellhound. That car bomb had now clearly been his plan… But she knew that the helicopter had not, and that it had instead been a simple opportunity.

"Where is Sasaki?" She asked, looking at the other Doves around her near the entrance of the L.E. Building. Looking at the First-Class, "Get me the Qs Squad. Mado Squad will engage…"

"I think I'll take care of it, Akira." Hairu Ihei said, appearing beside her with a trio of hooded figures, "I have business to attend to with Hellhound."

"But, Hairu…" Akira began to protest, until her headset buzzed, and the voice of Matsu Washuu ordered her to allow Hairu Ihei to engage Hellhound.

Akira watched Hairu and her cohort disappear into the building at a run, then looked up, just in time, to see a dozen bodies falling towards her. Above her, a cloaked figure leapt from the roof, followed by the familiar figure of Sasaki. The cloaked figure, turning in midair, caught the rapidly retreating sunlight, and revealed a terrifyingly familiar visage.

 _The One-Eyed Owl._

* * *

Ace, without knowing what Hinami and the rest of the :Re group were doing, kept himself busy, as he slowly made his way downwards through the L.E. Building. He had, against his will, abandoned all of his stolen explosives a few stories above when he'd been ambushed by a particularly strong set of Doves. He'd also sighted several other Ghouls, most in a uniform of some kind, who had wearily avoided him.

As he approached the upper floor of the L.E.'s main atrium, he stopped, looking out the massive set of glass windows that formed the front of the building. Hundreds of Doves were arrayed outside, many with their heads craned upwards, though some of them seemed to notice his presence. Heading towards the stairs, Ace was going to make himself the biggest distraction he could be.

Something punched through his chest, entering from his right shoulder and exiting from his left pectoral muscle. He stumbled for a moment, whirling around to face this new threat, that was when he noticed whatever had pierced him had a long, organic looking cable handing off of it.

" _You."_ Ace growled as his rinkaku exploded from his back, shooting towards Hairu Ihei. Another of whatever had pierced him took him through the back, and he turned his head slightly to see the hooded figure emerge from the shadows, a Quinque that looked like the cross between a rifle and a piece of fruit in his hands.

Hairu laughed as a third harpoon Quinque slammed through him, burying itself into the tile floor nearby.

"You won't be able to escape my friend's little net, Hellhound." She said, even as she came at him with a bladed Quinque, going for a horizontal, decapitating slash.

Ace had nowhere to go, as the three other Doves had taken up the slack, pinning him in place. And they were far, _far_ stronger than they should have been. All he could do was defend himself with his kagune. Blade met rinkaku, and Ace sent Hairu spinning away as he brought up one of his arm shields with enough force to send her sailing across the room.

"Not so easy, eh, lady?" Ace said huskily when his koukaku came up to protect from a second slash. But, Hairu moved with inhuman speed, and he spit up blood onto her coat as she drove her blade into his stomach.

"Easy enough." She said, smiling evilly. Leaving the Quinque embedded in his stomach, Hairu took a step back, before dropping into a squat in front of him. "I'd love to know why you're here, but I don't really care. Killing you will impress Arima, and then I can get promoted."

A whiff of smell hit him, and he suddenly realized she wasn't… _normal_. There was something very off about her, just like there was something off about her three fellows and Arima. No human should be as strong and have such quick reactions as they did.

Before Hairu could move again, Ace wrenched his body around, rinkaku cutting through his own flesh to free him. Then the madness of a kakuja transformation began to threaten to take over, and he fought that, even as his blood poured out of him.

"Get him _now!_ " Hairu cried out, but by then it was too late. Ace launched himself, now sheathed in the peculiar silver armor of his half-kakuja form from shoulders to knees, and his own rinkaku forming a second layer of muscle inside of his true muscles. The pain he'd felt at other times from his rinkaku was nearly gone, as he focused his mind on the task of killing his four attackers. Gripping one of the Quinque lines, he pulled it towards him, bringing the large figure holding it towards him.

Ace's world devolved into a maelstrom, as the four strange Doves assaulted him, and he attacked and defended with his arm shields and rinkaku. A helicopter on the outside shined a spotlight through the windows, pinpointing Ace. Those same windows began to shatter as Doves outside coldheartedly took potshots at Ace.

 _If only I had something to return fire with…_ He thought, just as the helicopter exploded, and the Doves outside were raked by crystal shards.

Not having any further concentration to spare, Ace simply accepted this gift from above and used it to his advantage. One of Hairu's allies glanced sideways towards the incoming fire, and Ace pounced. His right hand arm-shield morphed into a two meter long lance, and it proved how sharp it was as it went cleanly through the Dove's arm, then his head. Ripping his arm about harshly, Ace sent the corpse flying into one of his cohorts, before turning the third man into a living pincushion with numerous stabbing and lashing rinkaku.

Hairu drove into this melee, desperately going for a killing blow, but Ace now held the advantage. His lance point drove through her, and his rinkaku pierced her in a half-dozen places.

" _Arima…"_ Ace heard her whisper, as he backed away from her, allowing her to drop to her knees. Her hair hung over her eyes, and she bled from the numerous wounds across her body. " _I'm sorry."_

Ace dodged backwards as she looked up, revealing strange kakugan in both of her eyes. Only the iris was red, without the telltale black of the sclera that denoted a Ghoul.

"What in the hell are you?" Ace said, as he dodged away from a hail of ukaku shards. Kagune, a shimmering pink color, sprouted from her back, taking on the form of a pair of small wings over each of her shoulders.

"A failed experiment..." She said, leaping towards him. Ace easily dodged that attack, but wasn't prepared when she suddenly altered course in midair, and peppered him with numerous shards. "Created in case someone troublesome like _you_ comes along…"

She landed lightly on her feet, and shuddered as Ace ran her through with his lance once again, having bounded towards her with such velocity that blood and organs erupted from the second gaping wound in her chest.

"Well, whoever created you, sucks." He quipped, before ripping the lance upwards.

The third and final member of her team leapt from above, but did not attempt to attack him. Instead, he burst through one of the windows, retreating towards the Doves battle lines. Taking a moment to pull himself together during this lull, he walked over to Hairu's corpse, and picked up a piece of her flesh.

 _Definitely not human… Or even half-Ghoul._ He thought, before tasting the flesh. Immediately feeling famished, he fed heartily, but stopped when he had the uncomfortable awareness that he was being watched.

* * *

"Looks like Houndy-poo has really stepped up his game… And Ken Kaneki as well…"

Roma giggled as the rest of the Clowns watched Hellhound, and she spun from the satellite dish atop one of the apartment buildings that neighbored the L.E. Building. Uta and Itori were both looking on quite a bit less gleefully than the dozen other clowns who had been available when Uta sent out the call, but both cracked a smile.

"Yes, he's made himself quite a thorn in the CCG's side, hasn't he?" Itori said, arms crossed over her chest. "Definitely not time to shake up the pot, when he and Renji's group are doing such a splendid job of that already."

Something moved on the rooftop across from them, and with barely a whisper of noise, they disappeared into the darkness.


	17. Chapter 17

Ace now found himself in a strange predicament. At least a hundred Doves awaited him on the far side of the shattered glass windows, and the same number were still crawling about the building.

 _And I don't know where the others are..._ He thought, just as his phone rang.

"We've got him!" A breathless Hinami said, the sound of fighting loud through the phone, "Taking him someplace safe!"

 _Thank god._ Ace thought, even as he dodged to the side as someone fired an ukaku at him, the long red shards shredding the few remaining windows. A figure dropped down from above, landing heavily ten meters from Ace. Hanging up the phone, he stashed it in one of his pockets.

"Mmmm, boy." The Dove said, exhaling heavily through his nose as he raised the heavy Quinque in his hands, "It's time to die, _dog_."

Ace dodged to the side, sheltering behind his armor as the shards ricocheted. One of the shards slipped through, slamming into the unarmored past of his stomach. Immediately, he felt pain shoot from the wound throughout his body. Looking down, he saw the crystal shard had opened like a flower, and could feel it burying threads throughout his body. Distracted, two more slipped past, and Ace felt his legs go out from under him as the pain overwhelmed him.

"How unfortunate," Another voice said from behind him. Akira Mado slashed her Quinque down, the massive weapon cleaving through his legs, "That Hairu didn't finish you…"

Then she looked at the body of her friend, and saw the remains of her ukaku.

"What?" The female dove exclaimed, before dodging backwards as Ace struck at her with his rinkaku. "Special Class Mougan, look at-"

"Stay focused, Mado!" Mougan yelled, seeming to pause his incessant stream of shards.

 _Every seven seconds, he's got to recharge._ Ace thought, before concentrating on the shards still embedded in his skin, worming rinkaku tentacles towards them, and pushing them out. More of his rinkaku snaked across the ground towards his severed legs, and forcefully reattached them. Hands scrambling around his belt, he found the final piece of equipment he'd pilfered from the CCG. Thick, white smoke popped from the top of the smoke grenade as he pulled the pin and dropped it at his feet. The two Doves both moved as one, Mougan hosing the entire volume of the smoke while Mado blocked his only line of escape back into the building.

But Ace wasn't planning on going back into the building. Instead, he dashed out into the open courtyard, tearing through three Doves who had strayed too close. He had to time this correctly…

A stream of shards from Mougan's Quinque slashed through the smoke, seeming to dissipate the lingering screen into tiny tendrils. Ace leapt above the stream, barely noticing in time as Akira's Quinque appeared through the smoke. His rinkaku wrapped around it tightly, and he split the weapon in half with his koukaku. Landing hard on his shoulder, Ace rolled to his feet, rinkaku already striking.

Ace had caught Mougan in the recharge cycle for his Quinque, and he appeared to be heavily encumbered by the weapon. The Dove attempted to twist out of the way, but Ace's rinkaku split into dozens of smaller, more mobile tentacles.

"Special Class!" He heard Akira scream, as the heavily muscled Dove died in a welter of gore. "You _bastard_!"

A bullet bounced off his armor, and he turned to find Akira advancing, pistol in hand, destroyed Quinque forgotten behind her. Another shot blew through Ace's jaw, but the wound healed almost immediately. He charged her, plucking the pistol from her hands and driving her into the ground with rib cracking force. Just as he was about to deliver a finishing blow, another helicopter appeared above them, and four figures dropped from it.

"You're… _Dead_ , Hellhound." Akira wheezed from below him, "Arima may not be here, but the rest of Arima Squad won't need him to mop you up."

Something huge landed behind Ace, and he whirled around, seeing the huge monster struggling with a tiny figure that darted around it.

 _Ken?_ Ace thought, seeing the other young man twirling about with stupendous speed and agility. The massive kakuja, it had to be the One-Eyed Owl, roared and lashed outwards, landing a punishing blow that sent Kaneki skidding across the squares concrete.

 _I can't act like I know Ken at all. Time to get out of here._ Ace thought, retreating from the oncoming Arima squad. Towards the remains of the Special Class investigator he'd dismembered. As he neared the body, he noted that the Quinque he'd been using still appeared functional. Swiping it, he turned the barrel towards Arima squad and pulled the trigger.

 _Jeez! This thing kicks like a mule!_ He cursed as the weapon did its best to rip itself out of his hands from the force of its firing. Hundreds of the tiny shards shot out in a stream, catching two of the hooded members of Arima squad fully in the stream. Like they had with Ace, they buried themselves into their flesh, before blooming like flowers. However, having dozens of them punch into your body and 'bloom' seemed to be much more painful than having one or two. The two Doves dropped like sacks of potatoes, their bodies torn apart from the inside. Ricochets and shards that overshot slammed into the crowd of Doves who were keeping a safe distance from the action. The Quinque seemed to be able to handily pierce the body armor that the lower ranking Doves wore.

"Hellhound…" A figure appeared beside him, and Ace brought the barrel of the Quinque around, but found a heavily injured Ghoul lying near him, having only two of her limbs still attached. Loose fitting bandages wound loosely around her body. Her very _naked_ body. "Mind helping a lady out?"

The kakuja on the ground behind him began to disintegrate, but another figure dropped from the sky, smashing into the ground, with three of those freakish Quinx Doves dropping down around it. The newcomers continued their battle, the single Ghoul attacking with massive kagune that resembled gaping mouths with huge, ugly teeth.

"Well, I'm getting out of here." Ace said, reaching down and lifting her, he assumed she was an Aogiri tree grunt, over his shoulder while the Doves were distracted. His Koukaku expanded into a wide shield that covered her, as he took a prodigious leap away from the battle, the deadly Quinque held tightly with a pair of rinkaku. Taking a moment to turn back towards the battle, he could tell that the Ghoul on his back had lost consciousness.

 _What am I even doing?_ He thought, as he loaded the woman into another stolen car. _I don't even know who she is._

Pushing those thoughts away, he put the car into gear and sped down the street, heading directly away from :Re. Pulling out his phone, he dialed Hinami's number.

"Where are you?" She said, picking up after the first ring, "Yomo and I are at the shop, Touka and the others are spreading out."

"I've got something to do," Ace said, checking in the rear view mirror that his guest was still alive. "Heading out of the city. Gotta make sure I shake anyone tailing me. I'll call you soon."

She began to make a noise of protest, but Ace pressed _End_ before she could attempt to convince him of any other course of action. He couldn't risk bringing the CCG down on their little coffee house. Making his way onto the highway, he pulled his mask off, and attempted to blend in with other cars on the road.

 _Hard to do when you have a naked Ghoul in your back seat_. After an hour traveling directly north, they left the Tokyo area, and he turned back towards the coast. Traffic was bad, but he luckily didn't have any police checkpoints to run through.

The woman in the rear seat yawned, sitting up. Her body had completely healed while they drove, but Ace had done his best to not look to closely.

"Where are we?" She asked, running her fingers through her hair.

"Just outside of Chiba." He said brusquely, not taking his eyes off the road. "Why don't you check and see if there's something to cover up with back there."

"What, you don't like this?" She said, mocking him, "You're a strange one, Hellhound."

Ace ignored her jab, sitting in silence as she rummaged around the back seat. She found a hugely oversized shirt, pulled it on and then climbed into the front seat.

"So, where are you taking me?" She asked after a few moments of silence.

"Nowhere." Ace said again, "I'm making sure I wasn't followed. You're just along for the ride. I'll drop you off wherever you want sometime tomorrow."

She looked at him curiously, and then leaned back into the car's seat. Ace began to relax as well, and finally took a few moments to adjust his seat to compensate for his height. Getting off at the exit for the town of Sakura, he found a small, deserted campground and parked the car.

"Comeon… Uh," He said after a moment, hefting the Quinque out of the trunk, "What's your name?"

"Eto." She said, climbing out, and not seeming at all shy about having only a t-shirt covering her.

"Okay, Eto, I'm Ace," Ace said, "Let's find us another vehicle."

"Why can't we stay here?" She said curiously, pointing towards the deserted campground office. "That place looks safe enough."

"We can't afford to stop if the CCG was able to follow us," He growled, heading towards the glow of lights from the town. "And I don't want to lead them back to where I live."

"What's your affiliation with the Café Ghouls?" Eto asked as they walked beside the road. Ace turned his head sharply towards her, eyes narrowing. She shrugged in response, and then stepped closer to him, wrapping her arms around his left arm, and leaning her head against his shoulder. "Everyone knows about the Café Ghouls, silly. Ever since old man Yoshimura started it up, they've always controlled some portion of the city, and thrown wrenches into everyone else's plans."

"They're friends," Ace said simply, "And they've sheltered me since the CCG attacked myself and my father. What is the purpose of Aogiri Tree?"

"Oh, so you want to play twenty questions." Eto responded, "Fine. Aogiri Tree serves the One-Eyed King."

"You?"

She shook her head, and Ace's eyes narrowed at that little tidbit.

"My turn. Who was your father?"

"He was… The Death's Head Demon, and a Senior Agent of my organization." Ace kept his voice under control, but felt a tinge of sadness well up in his heart.

"Ah, how interesting."

"Now… How were you conceived, if you don't mind my asking."

"Well, my Father met my mother and they-" She said, voice dropping low.

"I know, I know… But," Ace said, pausing for a moment as he stepped over a log. "You… You're a natural One-Eye, aren't you?"

"I'm not going to answer that." Eto said, suddenly serious, "I've spent my whole life hiding, not even a handsome foreigner is going to bring that story out of me. But tell me, what is America like?"

"It's… Very different than Japan. We're only hunted if we use our abilities to break the law, or if we eat human flesh that hasn't been approved." Ace remembered that horrible day when he'd done just that, but shook his head to clear away the unwelcome memory. "We're allowed to live normal lives. My sister should have graduated school last year. She's going to be a teacher."

Eto made a noise, almost a sigh, but tinged with sadness.

"That must be nice…"

Ace threw the Quinque into the roadside ditch as she trailed off when a car rounded the bend ahead of them, headlights blinding as it rolled to a stop twenty feet away. A pair of men stepped out, and Ace prepared himself to kill them, until it turned out they were a pair of police officers.

"We got a report that someone was out at the old campground," The taller figure said, "Are you two it?"

Ace was silent, unsure if he should kill the two men or not, but Eto saved the two from an immediate execution.

"Yes sir!" She said excitedly, leaning back and revealing a bit more of herself than Ace thought the officers were prepared for. He saw the two shadows turn to look towards each other, and then slam the doors and walk out towards. "We were just out driving out for a bit of fun."

"I bet you were," The shorter one said, moving close to her, "Why don't you forget your friend over there and have a little fun with us?"

His hand shot out towards Eto's chest, but he yelped in pain as Ace's rinkaku sliced the hand off.

"Wha… Ah, shit!" The taller one said, his hand pulling his pistol cleanly from its holster. Ace's rinkaku flashed towards him, but he froze as Eto tore the man in two with a massive spike that appeared from her arm. And a single crimson kakugan flashed in her right eye.

 _What. In. The. Hell._ Ace thought, his mind racing as the realization of who he'd saved struck him. _She's the One-Eyed Owl._

The other officer, without his right hand, seemed unable to draw his pistol, and instead made a run for his car. He made it two steps before Ace cut him down, stabbing a rinkaku through the back of his skull.

"Damn." He said aloud, his own kakugan appearing, as Eto turned towards him. He leapt away from her, feeling suddenly uneasy about being in the presence of such a purportedly powerful Ghoul.

"Figured it out, have we?" Her laughter struck him as odd, almost maniacal. She approached him again. "I don't have any plans for you, right now, Hellhound. You've earned a lot of brownie points with me, tonight. Now, comeon, its dinner time."

They ate in silence, though Ace felt much better when he'd eaten his fill. The days adventures had drained him dangerously, and though he felt better, he knew he needed to rest soon enough. He loaded the remains of the bodies back in the police car, and trotted back towards the campground, where he recovered the other car. Using his rinkaku, he smashed the front end of their stolen car up pretty severely, and then flipped the police car over, ripping the fuel tank open in the process.

"What a neat idea," Eto said from where she sat, legs crossed like a child. "Most local Ghoul's would never think to disguise their kills as an accident."

"Well, like I said-"

"You don't want to be tailed." She finished for him as he lit a match to the trail of gas he'd laid out across the grass, "Now, what are we doing?"

"We'll head down into Sakura and find a place to shelter for the night." He said, grabbing his Quinque, "Let's get going."

"I'm feeling a little full," She said, "Could you carry me some more?"

Ace nearly snapped at her, but thought better of it. He didn't know if he could take her on in a straight up fight, and right now, he honestly didn't know if he even _wanted_ to. Sighing, he approached her, and lifted her into his arms, before sliding her around onto his back. As the trail of flame reached the car, he headed through the forest towards Sakura, carrying the infamous One-Eyed Owl on his back.

Eto was light enough that carrying her didn't even tax Ace's strength, and so they made it into Sakura after only twenty minutes, just after midnight.

"Let's find some nice abandoned house to…" He began to say, before trailing off as Eto hopped over to a nearby green payphone.

"Give me a 100 yen coin," She said insistently. Ace handed her some change, and she popped it into the slot, waited a few moments and then began to speak. "I need a place to stay in Sakura ASAP. No, I'm not in trouble, just got in late and I… No, nothing too special, just the usual. Twenty minutes, alright. Thanks so much, Shunji!"

She hung up the phone, and turned to him with a malicious smile.

"My man said he'd get us some accommodations, a low-key place. Just gotta get across the train tracks." Eto seemed gleeful, and that made Ace highly uneasy. "Now, let's get going again."

Hopping back up onto his back, they made their way across the tracks.

"Oh, dear lord." Ace muttered as they approached her "low-key" place. It was a four-star hotel in the center of town, and a man was waiting outside for them. She slid off his back, and went up to the man.

"Hello, Miss." He said, giving her a curt bow. "We understand you value your privacy, so I've been given permission to take you up the service elevator."

Eto nodded.

"Right this way."

Ace and Eto followed the man into a side door, and rode the open elevator car upwards to the very top floor. Being this close, Ace could smell blood on the man. He was a Ghoul, all right.

"Your room." Their guide said, opening the door to a very well appointed suite. "If you need anything, anything at all, just give the front desk a call."

"I need a fresh set of clothes, and so does he," There was no lack of authority in Eto's voice as she spoke, and the man nodded, "Something stylish, if you can."

The Ghoul bowed and left the room, leaving the two alone. Without any warning, Eto pulled the shirt off and headed towards the shower, padding across the thick carpet and onto the tile. Ace averted his gaze, turning towards the wraparound windows that gave a glorious shot of nighttime Sakura. In the distance, he could see the glow of lights from Tokyo.

 _Hinami_. Ace thought, before heading towards the white leather couch and flopping into it. Turning the huge TV on, he flipped to a news channel.

 _No mention of the attack on the Lunar Eclipse…_ Another knock at the door, and a maid handed him two sets of folded clothing. She nodded to him, kakugan flashing in her eyes. Ace flashed his own, and she left. _What kind of power does this woman hold…?_

The door to the bathroom opened, and Eto walked out, a towel draped over her shoulders, but naked otherwise. Ace stood, looking at the ceiling as she passed, and then headed towards the shower. Twenty minutes later, he stepped out of the bathroom, feeling both refreshed and exhausted. The lights had been dimmed and Eto was still naked, draped across the couch with an arm propped under her head.

 _That has to be one of the most beautiful women in Japan._

Ace took a single look, and then headed towards the other couch. Snagging the boxers the maid had brought, he dropped the towel from around his waist and pulled them on. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, and he turned his head just enough to see that Eto was staring at him.

"You look better with them off, Hellhound," She said, still refusing to use his name. When he refused with a shake of his head, she rolled off the couch and walked towards him. Grabbing his hand, she pulled it onto one of her breasts. "Are you frightened?"

"No."

"Then let go of whatever is holding onto you." Eto said, pushing him back onto the couch, before straddling him when he sat. Her one kakugan appeared, seeming to glow "You're strange, Hellhound. A foreigner drawn into a foreign conflict. I know that America is a paradise compared to here, so why are you still here?"

"Because my superiors told me to stay." He said, pausing, "And because I want to be here."

Eto's lips pushed against his, not so much a kiss as a forceful touching. She pulled away after a moment and let a distasteful look pass over her face. Ace's body chose at that point to betray him.

"Generally, I'd torture you mercilessly and bend you to my will," Eto said matter-of-factly, letting her nails dig into his shoulders, "But… I don't think I will with you. You're too much like my favorite. And I don't think I could break you before you died, anyways."

"You're crazy, you know that?" Ace murmured, before letting their lips touch again. "Absolutely insane."

Eto laughed the same maniacal laugh she'd laughed earlier. Then she dug her teeth into his shoulder, not hard enough to break the skin, but hard enough to hurt.

"You're a little touched as well." She said, smiling down at him. Eto pulled herself off of him and stood, heading towards the bed, she looked over her shoulder and said, "Now, come and join me, Hellhound."

* * *

"Finding and eliminating Hellhound is of the utmost importance, now."

Akira Mado hung her head slightly, embarrassed that she'd failed to kill the Hellhound before he escaped. Noone had come out and said that it was her fault, but she nonetheless blamed herself, especially for Special Class Mougan's death. Even the fact that she had two broken and several bruised ribs, in addition to a hairline fracture in her right forearm, didn't quell the fact that she'd failed. Even Amon had been unable to quell her sour thoughts.

The meeting was taking place in the CCG Main Office, with Chairman Washuu himself attending with his son.

"Even with this declaration of war against us, the United States and its allies can't strike us a heavy blow here." Chairman Washuu said, stroking his long white goatee, "Their agent, however, has grown quite annoying in how successful he has been. He seems to be quite crafty, and powerful for such an apparently young Ghoul. When we find him, we must strike quickly, and with all our strength. Aura, how badly have we been hit so far?"

The Division I Investigation Commander stood.

"Our offices in Nigeria, Croatia, Russia and Finland have all been completely obliterated," She said, flipping through a sheaf of papers, "The Nigerian and Finnish offices were destroyed by a cruise missile strikeS, while Croatia was destroyed by a car bomb." Her eyes hardened slightly when she read the last one though. "The Russian offices were hit by at least fifty Ghouls. Noone made it out."

"And how many Investigators have we lost in the last month?"

"Three Special Class, twenty-two Associate class, and three hundred other Investigators."

The Chairman nodded slowly.

"And how many of those deaths are attributable to Hellhound?" He asked.

"Approximately half."

Steepling his fingers in front of his face, the old man leaned back, and his eyes took on a contemplative look.

"We must chase the fox from the underbrush," He finally said, "But since we cannot deal with him on his own territory, we must put him on unfamiliar ground. What is the status of the Yokosuka Naval Base?"

The Yokosuka Naval Base was the United States only remaining foothold on Japan, and had been under blockade since America declared war. Akira had been in charge of a team that had covertly scouted the base, looking for weakpoints. There hadn't been many.

"Chairman," She said, "There are approximately two thousand troops stationed on Yokosuka. They've been surreptitiously digging in at the base of the peninsula, with pillboxes and strong points with supporting fields of fire. In addition, most of their Seventh Fleet is still stuck at anchor." Akira paused, suddenly feeling slightly uneasy. "It would require a massive expenditure of manpower to assault them. The CCG doesn't currently have enough assets on hand to do so."

"Does the Self-Defense Force?" Yoshitoki asked. "Would an armored division with naval support be enough to unstick them with our assistance?"

Akira nodded.

"Then let us kill two birds with one stone." The Chairman said, standing to his feet and looking at Yoshitoki, "We will inform the Prime Minister of what we need to accomplish our goals, and set this into motion. Aura, have a battle plan drawn up and to Yoshitoki by tomorrow morning at the latest. Good day."

The two Washuu's exited the room as all of the Associate and Special Class Investigators bowed.

Akira excused herself, heading to the bathroom as nausea suddenly took hold. She'd had a late lunch, and it was apparently coming back to haunt her. The nausea intensified, and she suddenly felt quite dizzy. A hand went to her nose as she felt something warm dripping, Akira's fingertips coming away covered in blood. She took two more steps, and then collapsed to the ground in the hallway, as darkness began to close in around her.


	18. Chapter 18

Ace awoke with a start, eyes immediately darting around the room. Eto was sitting on the couch, fully dress with a cup of coffee in her hand. Ace crawled out of the bed, looking levelly at her. That was when he noticed the third person in the room. His eyes were cold orbs of chipped sapphire, as he made eye contact with Ace.

"Tatara, Hellhound. Hellhound, Tatara." Eto said, not even looking away from the TV. "Play nice, won't you both?"

Ace shook his head, clearing away the last vestiges of sleepiness. Turning his back on the other two Ghouls, he pulled on the clothes that had been provided.

"I'd like to make you an offer."

Ace finished buckling his belt before he turned back to Eto.

"What is it?"

"I'd like to goto America, even if only temporarily." She said, nonchalantly. Ace was taken aback, _she_ wished to goto America? Why would…

"You wish to seek asylum?"

She nodded.

"What about the… rest of your organization?" Ace asked carefully, nodding towards Tatara.

"Tatara and the other executives can run things while I'm gone."

Ace didn't think that his superiors would risk and extraction team to rescue Eto, even if she was the One-Eyed Owl.

"What're you offering in return?"

"All the information I've gathered about the organization known as V." Ace's eyes opened wide. _This is what I came here for!_ "And I know a considerable amount. Enough to possibly bring down the entire organization. But I won't speak a word of it, except one fact, something I learned from an unfortunate former associate. Someone in your organization is a spy for both the Doves and V, a high level secretary in your Western Branch."

"Who?"

Eto waggled a finger at him, and then crooked the same finger, telling… no, _ordering_ him closer.

"When you get a chance to speak with your superiors, I'll be at _this_ address." She handed him an address, taking a step closer to him in the process, "Now, let me leave you with a little gift…"

Ace sensed no malice from her, and so he was completely unprepared for her swift strike. Her right hand, held flat like the blade of a knife, slashed up into his abdomen effortlessly tearing through his flesh. The world flashed before him, and he seemed unable to move, other than tracking her other hand as she raised it high…

"Hellhound, you will become, willing or unwilling, a Hand of the King." The world seemed to narrow suddenly, as her laughter filled his ears.

When Ace next awoke, he was alone in the room, and he _still_ had a nasty wound from where she had slashed him. Concentrating on it, the wound healed, and he was able to stand, though his vision was still blurry. He felt highly nauseous, having to run to the toilet to vomit after a few moments. But by then the blurriness of his vision and the general disorder of his own little mental world was beginning to die down slightly.

"What the hell did she do to me?" Ace said aloud, running a finger over the smooth skin above the wound. He needed to get back into Tokyo, and make sure everyone was alright. But first…

"Agent Lincoln, a pleasure to hear from you." Control said, after Ace got through the security protocols, "What can I do for you?"

"Situation update. Significant battle with CCG less than twenty-four hours ago, between fifty and one hundred." Ace paused, then let the big news drop. "Have made contact with local resistance group, Aogiri Tree. Their leader is seeking asylum, and is willing to trade information on V to get it."

"Stand by."

Ace waited a few moments, looking out the windows and observing the townfolk as they went about their business. Then Control returned.

"Asylum approved."

"What is the ETA on extraction?" Ace asked, though his heart tightened slightly at the thought of leaving the :Re crew and associates, especially Hinami…

"Negative on extraction. Active operations against Yokosuka Naval base are imminent. Link up with Senior Agent Tomlinson and bring the asylum seeker within five days. Is that all I can help you with today, Agent Lincoln?"

"Actually, there is one more thing, Control. The subject revealed that someone in the West Coast Branch is a spy for the CCG and V. No other information available."

"Affirmative, Agent Lincoln. Thank you for your service. Have a nice day."

Ace let out a sigh.

 _Active operations against Yokosuka. That can't be good._

Stealing another car, he drove back into Tokyo, dumping the car in an alleyway and walking the last few miles to :Re. When he walked in, he was immediately greeted by Irimi.

"Where have you been?" She said curtly.

"I stayed the night outside Tokyo," He said quietly, noticing a few customers, though all three were Ghoul's. "Where's everyone else?"

"Nishiki's apartment. They're having a meeting. You should probably head there."

Ace nodded his thanks, and headed back out onto the streets. After getting a few blocks away, people suddenly gave him strange looks, as if they were trying to remember if they'd seen him before…

"The CCG has released today a remarkable amount of information on the devious Ghoul, Hellhound," Ace's mouth went dry, and he stopped for a moment in the middle of the sidewalk, listening to the news announcer from a shops small radio. "They have revealed him to be a merciless Agent of the United States, tasked with assassinating the Prime Minister of Japan in conjunction with the villainous Ghoul's of Aogiri Tree. In other news, today Sen Takatsuki announced that her long awaited novel, King Bileygr will have a surprise release today, nearly three months early…"

Darting into a nearby alleyway as someone across the street pointed at him, Ace dropped down a manhole cover into the underground. Sprinting through the ankle deep water, he fled in what he thought was the general direction of Nishiki's apartment.

 _This is bad, this is bad, this is BAD._ He thought, racking his brain, trying to figure something out. The CCG were plastering his face all across the internet and on television… He had _no_ place to hide, at least not anywhere where people couldn't see him. Ascending a latter after a half hour of running in circles, he found himself even further away from his destination than when he'd started. But, luck of lucks, he was able to snatch a hoodie with his rinkaku without being noticed and then descend back the way he had come.

Sweating profusely and intensely frustrated, he knocked on Nishiki's door as the sun was beginning to set. Familiar laughter from inside suddenly cut off, as Ace nervously stepped from foot to foot.

"Get in here!" Ken Kaneki said, grabbing him by the front of his jacket and dragging him in. "What the hell happened last night?"

Ace immediately noticed a change in Ken. His hair was pitch black, and he seemed… _Colder_. There was no warmth left in his eyes, it was like looking into the eyes of a shark.

 _Or Arima._

"I did what I had too." Ace said defensively, his kakugan appearing, prying Ken's fingers off the front of his jacket. Looking around the room, he noticed the others. Hinami, Touka and Nishiki's girlfriend were on the couch, while Yomo stood in the corner. The Gourmet, looking rather frumpy in borrow clothes that were too large for him, sat in a chair with his legs pulled elegantly over one another.

Ken's eyes narrowed.

"You murdered nearly fifty Investigators…"

"They would have done the same to me if given the chance!" Ace lost his cool. "And it never would have happened if…"

"Ace, Brother, stop it!" Hinami said, coming to stand between the two. "There are more important things to worry about…"

"Exactly," Ace said, "Like the fact that my identity is being broadcast across the city!" Ace said, pointing towards the TV. Surveillance footage of him from the night before was playing, a shot of him mowing down Doves with a machine gun.

Touka's phone rang, and she took the call into the kitchen while Ace continued.

"We're all in danger," Ace rubbed his face with his hands, unable to fathom how much of a clusterfuck this had become. "And I just got word that the Yokosuka Naval base may be attacked."

"The American Naval base?" Nishiki said, "Why would…?"

"We're at war with them," Ken said, looking angrily at Ace, "And nothing is off the table during war."

"Irimi just called," Touka said, interrupting Ace's snarky response, "There are Dove's snooping around :Re. She's already destroyed all of our files and is heading this way now, through the 24th. This is it, it's over."

"It's not over," Ace said, seeing how crestfallen the others were, "I'm heading to the Naval base in the morning. I have a feeling the troops there are being pulled out, and we can all go with them."

"They'd take us?" Nishiki said, standing up and walking to his single window, "We're citizens of a nation they're at war with."

"I'm an Agent of the FBGI. I can get all of you asylum."

Something in the distance boomed, and Ace felt the building shake slightly below him. Another boom was louder, and then a long series.

"Hey, those jets are pretty low!" Nishiki said from the window. Ace pressed his face against the glass, craning his neck to watch the formation of Japanese attack aircraft fly by. His eyes widened as he saw how heavily loaded they were with bombs and rockets.

"Shit! We need to go _now!_ " Ace said, just as another phone rang, this one Ken's.

"What? They've arrested her? Why?" Ken said, clearly agitated. "Where are they keeping her? The Main Office?"

He hung up the phone, and then looked at Ace.

"I need your help."

* * *

Akira struggled against the restraints on her bed as the doctors stabbed a thick needle into her abdomen.

"My, my, Associate Special Class Mado, you've apparently been very busy with the wrong sorts." She looked up in fear at Yoshitoki Washuu entered the room. Behind him were two burly, but unfamiliar, men with Special Class Investigator rank tabs on.

"What have I done?" Akira said, unable to control the fear in her voice. "What charges…?"

"The charges are that there is a Ghoul baby growing inside you." Yoshitoki said, face impassive. For a moment though, his eyes turned black, and his pupils took on the red color of a Ghoul. "As soon as we confirm that, you will be disposed of… properly. I just came to see if the report that I received was true. How sad that it was."

Then he turned and left the room, leaving Akira to scream her denial as pain racked her body.

* * *

"Are you sure you want to do it this way? You know that this is going to be _big_."

Ken and Ace sat together on a rooftop, looking towards the distant CCG Main Office. Ken had arrived only a few moments before, having been inside their target, and only a day had passed since they had

"Yeah," Ken said, "I've got to get her out, especially if the charges are true. Are _you_ sure that you want to be my decoy?"

Looking towards the scene of destruction in the distance, where the United States Military was putting up a hell of a fight against the Japanese forces arrayed against them. Ace had already counted nearly a dozen aircraft shot down, and none of them had been American.

"As long as you help me with my task." Ace said, turning and making eye contact with the older ghoul. Ace had come clean to Ken, who had been angry that he'd betrayed Hinami's trust. But when he'd revealed who he'd been with…

"Only as long as I can speak with her. Alone. And that package you wanted me to leave is in the third floor utility closet."

Ace nodded. Tapping the watch on his wrist, he checked the holstered pistol under his jacket. Ken had also been kind enough to supply him a few toys from the CCG arms locker in the area.

"It's not every day that I get to try to assassinate the Chairman of the CCG." He said, faux happily. "Just make sure you keep to the timetable."

Ken nodded, before standing and heading towards the stairwell. Ace, pulling his hoodie up to cover his head, used the fire escape to descend into the alley, and then walked out into the busy afternoon foot traffic near the Main Office. Crossing the street, he walked past the outer security perimeter, a dozen Investigators milling about as if unsure of what their purpose was. Through the main doors, his hands slipped into his hoodies pockets. The foyer was packed with people, many of them reporters who were attempting to talk to some high ranking investigator. Maps of the Yokosuka Naval Base were up on a screen, as well as a picture of himself.

Ace walked through it all, heading towards the RC Scan gates on the far side. Noone seemed to notice him, their eyes being stuck on the tall, elegant looking man explaining the situation.

 _They're talking about me. How ironic_. Ace thought, just as he followed the man in front of him through the RC scan gate leading towards the stairs. An alarm sounded, and a red light flashed above the gate.

" _Ghoul detected at Gate 4!_ " An electronic voice said. Ace froze, knowing that every eye was turning towards him.

The foyer erupted into complete chaos, as Doves attempted to rush towards the gate, along with a few brave reporters, while everyone else fled. The men and women around him turned to look at him, and seeing his active kakugan, fled up the stairs, and back through the gates to either side.

"Put your hands up!" Some little punk-looking Investigator said, a pistol in his hand. Ace, looked at him, and the punk took a shot, the round passing through Ace's throat. But the wound healed almost immediately, and Ace's counterstrike was far more grotesque than it needed to be, as a single rinkaku slithered out of his back and impaled the man through the heart. Ace lifted the now limp man high into the air, and then a dozen more rinkaku joined the first, tearing him to pieces and raining blood across the on rushing Doves.

A pair of smoke grenades, part of the gifts Ken had given him, came out of his pockets, already streaming choking white smoke. One he dropped at his feet, the other he threw into the crowd. Another Dove died on his rinkaku, unlucky enough to be the closest. Taking a moment to affix a small device to the corpse, he dropped it on the ground at his feet.

Then he disappeared up the stairs, climbing up the open central shaft with his kagune, stopping on the third floor and ripping open the door on the small utility closet here.

 _Ohka_. _Cherry Blossom_. Ace had learned the name of the Quinque he'd stolen from Ken. One of the oldest Quinque, it was nearly sixty years old, and for many years it had been the most powerful Quinque every made. _And now it's being used against the Doves._

Ace smiled, continuing his climb upwards. A woman screamed as he passed by the sixth level, and something struck him in the back as a weapon boomed behind him. A young female Investigator held the pistol in her hand, firing it wildly at him. Turning slightly as he continued to move, he held down the trigger on Ohka for half a second, turning the Investigator into a pulpy mess.

 _Well, enough time has passed, I guess._ Ace thought, before pulling a small pen-like device, and pressing down on its detonator.

* * *

Ken Kaneki followed the horde of other Investigators heading towards the stairwell, having slipped in through a side door. In their haste to get to the door, though, many of them were doomed. Nearly to the second that they had planned it, the small FAB, or Fuel-Air Bomb, went off, filling the opening to the stairwell with flames.

It was a new weapon that had just come into the CCGs arsenal, and _should_ have been able to kill an S ranked Ghoul without requiring a massive amount of manpower to complete the task.

Against unarmored Investigators, it was a massacre. The explosion ripped outwards, seeming to suck all of the air out of the building, and shattering every window. Bodies and pieces of bodies flew through the air, and even Kaneki was nearly knocked from his feet. But he had a mission, and he persevered, using the smoke to head towards the _other_ stairwell, that led downwards. The Main Office's research labs were a well-known 'secret', and Ken had been a very frequent guest.

Sliding his keycard through the card reader, he knew that that was his final break with the CCG. There was no turning back now. The door slid open, revealing a pristine white-tiled hallway beyond. At the end were two burly looking men in Investigator outfits. Ken immediately knew that they weren't what they seemed. Both moved with a purpose, kagune sprouting from their back, one ukaku and the other bikaku, to attack him. Ken simply waited for them as the door closed with a whisper behind him.

* * *

The Doves on the top floor had finally gotten their crap together, and were waiting for him. A dozen ukaku and an equal number of firearms discharged as he appeared. Many of the bullets passed through his body, and the ukaku bolts and shards stitched into his skin painfully, but he pressed on, flipping effortlessly over the stair guardrail and feeling his koukaku slide from his back. One koukau appendage moved down his back and right arm, lengthening out into a two meter long lance, while the other widened into a small shield over his left hand. Ohka was held by two of his rinkaku, and with a thought he swept away the far side of the stairwell with a burst of shards, before dismembering the others. A young, but hard-looking, Dove moved towards him, coming from the direction of the huge bronze double doors that led to the Chairman's office.

A scythe appeared in his hands, and he struck like a snake, body contorting even as his dark hair flapped wildly around his face. The scythe's blade bounced off Ace's shield, while his lance drove in for the kill. His strike was parried by a strange man with white eyes and long, straight, black hair with a sword. Three more Doves took the chance to attack his mostly undefended back, but were forced to retreat behind their Quinque when Ohka spun in the grip of his rinkaku and fired a punishing burst at them.

" _Move._ " Ace said harshly, before brutally kicking the tall man's knee, causing the joint to flex backwards and break. Even as he crashed to the ground, Ace spun, his lance point driving into the Scythe wielding Dove's leg, followed by a punishing blow with his shield, sending the Investigator to his knees. Taking his opportunity, Ace ran towards the door. It didn't budge when he attempted to push it open, so with the sheer force of his rinkaku, he ripped the door off his hinges. Expecting an attack, his koukaku continued to flow down his body. But no attack came when the doors opened.

"Welcome, Hellhound." The old man said from where he sat behind his elaborately carved desk. Atop the desk was a wide-bladed broadsword, with a strangely organic look to it. "So you've come to kill me?"

 _A Quinque. Better watch out._

"Not really." Ace answered truthfully, knowing that if all had gone to place, Ken would be wrapping things up in a few moments. "Just needed everyone to be looking up here at us."

He smiled, showing his teeth in a feral grin. Chairman Washuu seemed less than impressed though.

"You dare to mock me?" He growled as Ace grew closer, Ohka pointed directly at the chairman. "I wonder if your Father was so brave when our knives dug into his flesh?"

Ohka spit out an angry stream of shards, but they didn't penetrate the armor that sprang up to protect the elder Washuu.

 _Damn, Quinque armor!_ Ace thought, triggering the transformation that would turn him into a kakuja. Horrible, burning pain shot through his abdomen, as the point where Eto had stabbed him seemed to heat up incredibly.

Ken stepped over the bodies of the two Ghouls, smashing open the doors on the far end with a flick of his kagune. A pair of nurses were cowering behind a desk, he approached, and one of them urinated herself.

"Where is Akira Mado?" He asked calmly.

"T-That way!" One of them yelled, pointing towards the door at the very end of the hallway. Ace ran, kicking the door open. A man wearing a doctor's coat held Akira, who looked weaker than he had ever seen her in a hospital gown, from behind. A small pistol pressed against her temple.

"I'm getting out of here alive, Ghoul!" The man yelled, "One more step and I'll kill her!"

Ken froze. He could attempt to kill the man with a quick strike to the head… But with the pistol so close…

"Just let her go, I'm not here for you." Ken said. "Let her go, and you can walk out of here."

The Doctor laughed.

"Neither of us are walking out of here, fool. If I let you take her, then I'll die no matter-"

The entire building shook, and an unearthly wail penetrated through the thick concrete. Ken was shocked by the volume of it, but it caused the Doctor to cover his ears, dropping Akira face first onto the floor. Realizing his mistake, the Doctor tried to bring his pistol back around to get a shot at Kaneki, but a rinkaku drove through the center of his face, embedding itself into the wall behind him.

Reaching down, Ken lifted Akira into his arms, heading back towards the exit.

Slipping out of the building in the continued chaos, he made his way to the extraction point, finding the car that Ace had prepositioned for their escape. But of Ace, there was no sign.

Another unearthly roar sounded, and Ken turned just in time to see a shining figure at the top of the Main Office.

 _Is that Ace?_ Ken thought, seeing how familiar the movements of the figure looked. Laying Akira in the back seat of the car, he ascended the wall of their alley, leaping between rooftops. With a final massive leap, his rinkaku stabbed into the side of the main office a few floors below the top floor. Climbing upwards, he crested the edge just in time to be nearly hit by a dismembered body.

 _Oh, god._ Ken thought, seeing Ace. The other Ghoul was now covered in from head to toe in silvery armor, but his limbs had grown overly long, and his legs had gained a second joint. A terrifying mask, not too dissimilar from Ace's regular Hellhound mask covered his face… But it moved as if it were organic.

 _A… A werewolf?_ Ken thought, even as Ace shot a dozen rinkaku tentacles at the group of Investigators near the stairwell, lifting his unlucky victims above his head and tossing them lazily out of the window. That drew Ken's attention to the limp form of Chairman Washuu against the wall, face covered in blood. _When did Ace become a full kakuja?_

"Sasaki!" A familiar voice yelled from the far side. Mutsuki and the rest of the Quinx squad were part of the far group, their kagune being the only thing that seemed to be holding off Ace's attacks. "Help us!"

 _Remember the mission_. Ken smashed down the welling up of emotions that were threatening to wash over him. _Remember that the Doves are evil…_

"Ace." Ken said quietly, and the Kakuja turned its head slightly, looking down at him with a red eye, "It's time to go."

For a moment, it seemed that Ace would attack him, as the kakuja's eyes narrowed, but then it turned and wrapped Ken in an embrace of rinkaku, leaping from the Main Office to the nearest roof. As Ken was carried to the extraction point, he pulled a twin to the detonator that Ace had used earlier. Pressing the button, it detonated the blocks of C4 that Ace had directed him over the phone in placing throughout the Main Office.

Ace stopped, turning towards the explosions. Ken could almost hear him sighing in frustration through the armor of his Kakuja. They had originally meant to drop the Main Office as a whole, but it only seemed to sag in on itself, a few floors collapsing while it stayed nominally upright. Ace dropped Ken onto his feet, kakuja appendages falling off of him.

"Damn… I…" Ace collapsed to his knees, bathed in sweat and breathing heavily. "That was… _exhilarating!_ "

"Comeon, we can worry about that later." Ken said, dragging the other Ghoul to his feet. "We've got a timetable to keep. The others should be waiting for us near Yokosuka."

"We gotta make a stop, remember?" Ace reminded him, and Ken mentally cursed, having wished they could avoid that part.

"Got it, let's go."

They leapt from roof to roof, before dropping down beside their getaway vehicle. Akira was awake, trying to sit up in the back seat.

Ken hopped in the driver's seat, and they sped off into the nearly deserted streets, as Ace opened a map service on his phone.

"Take a right up here!" Ken did as Ace told him, sending Akira tumbling across the back seat.

"Could you buckle her in?"

Ace nodded, handing the phone to Ken, before a trio of kagune wound their way between the seats. At the sight of them, Akira screamed and pushed away.

" _The Hellhound!"_ Akira screamed, eyes locked onto the other Ghoul. "What the hell, Haise?"

"He's an ally," He responded, as Ace pinned her in place with two hand-like kagune, while the others buckled her in. The appendages retreated back into his body, while he turned back to face the front. "And my name isn't Haise Sasaki."

"It's Ken Kaneki."


	19. Chapter 19

The building they stopped in front of was the company office of the Shoeisha Publishing Company. Ace and Ken stepped out of the car, looking up at the ominous looking clouds building up overhead before heading into the main foyer noticing the three black SUVs parked up on the sidewalk. A female Dove was already inside, speaking angrily with the woman behind the counter. A dozen other Doves were arrayed behind her, their attaché cases making small clicking noises, as if they were shaking.

"I'm sorry, Special Class Aura, but Miss Takatsuki is not seeing anyone currently…"

The Special Class, not noticing the two intruders, pulled a knife out of her pocket and sliced the secretary's throat, blood splashing out across the wall to her right. Ace and Ken split apart, hiding behind a pair of columns near the doorway.

"Find Sen Yakatsuki." The Special Class ordered, wiping the knife on a small cloth that appeared from her pocket. "Chairman Washuu wishes to speak to her about her newest novel. Exterminate the staff, no one escapes."

Her underlings complied without a word of complaint, bursting through the massive tinted glass wall that separated the foyer from the main work floor, where dozens of men and women were going about their business.

Ace moved to join Ken at his column, whispering, "They don't know about our attack on the Main Office yet."

"Good." Ken said uncomfortably. Ace noticed the discomfort, and raised an eyebrow. Ken pursed his lips, then answered, "I just can't believe how… How willing the CCG are to sacrifice lives. Now, where is this woman you're looking for? Eto?"

Ace shrugged.

"This is the address. Do you want to goto the upper floors and search?" Ace flexed his right hand, and the armored forearm of his 'Werewolf' form took shape, "While I take care of this little problem?"

Ken nodded, and trotted towards the stairwell. Ace looked down at his hands, seeing the razer-sharp claws, remembering how exhilarating his time as a Kakuja had been.

 _Too destructive._ Ace thought, before walking out from behind the column and into the work floor. Investigator Aura was busily supervising her underlings in slaughtering the editors when Ace attacked. Her senses had to be highly tuned, as she spun towards Ace, avoiding his blow with nearly inhuman speed.

"Initiate SS rated battle plan!" Aura said, leaping away from him, the attaché case in her hand opening to reveal a Quinque that looked like a rocket launcher. "Engaging!"

A trio of missiles shot from the Quinques barrel, spiraling towards him. Leaping to the side and hoping to avoid him, he was rewarded with two flying by, while the third burrowed into his arm. It exploded, blowing off Ace's left arm at the shoulder, and ripping open part of Ace's chest.

 _Shit._

Ace activated his kakuja, feeling his energy begin to drain off more rapidly than before. His heart raced as the armor enveloped him, and his viewpoint shifted as his kakuja form added another meter to his height. He roared, just as Special Class Aura retreated behind an array of her subordinates, likely to wait for the weapon to reload.

The Doves didn't attack, simply waiting in place, waiting for _him_ to make the first move.

 _How cold blooded_. _Fine_.

Ace leapt upwards, claws digging into the ceiling of the work room. He moved quickly, using his rinkaku, two of them trailing behind him like a pair of crimson tails, to propel himself directly downwards towards the waiting Investigators. They attempted to move out of the way, but his rinkaku struck, killing two by swiftly beheading them, while another died as Ace stuck his right hand through his chest.

"Up!" Aura yelled, and her men dove out of the way, as another trio of rockets blew chunks out of Ace's kakuja armor. An Investigator with a large axe shaped Quinque struck quickly, his blade finding a weakness in Ace's leg armor, sending Ace to his knees as he cut through the muscles and kagune in the back of his legs.

 _Double damn it_. His rinkaku wrapped around the axe-wielding Dove, squeezing him until his eyes popped out of his head and blood ran down onto the floor. Another cut his blade downwards through Ace's shoulder, lopping off his right arm. He ripped that man's face off with a swipe of his other clawed hand.

Aura suddenly moved forward, her Quinque changing shape. A long spike appeared at the front, and the weapon itself seemed to lock onto her right arm with an organic appendage. She spun through his flurry of blows, coming to within arm's reach. Ace struck, but the quinque fired, and a three meter long sharpened spike shot out, ripping through his armor and flesh, sending blood and muscle to shower the wall behind him. His kakuja armor fell away, leaving him exposed, his body having a hard time healing all of the damage.

"You're dead, Hellhound."

Ace laughed, and Aura paused, eyes narrowing in confusion and then anger.

"You should see what happened to the _last_ Dove that told me that!"

His laughter echoed off the walls, even as Aura pointed the weapon at Ace's head and began to stroke the trigger. A gun boomed from the foyer, again and again, until an entire magazine had been emptied. Three bullets struck Aura in the chest, and one drew a line across her beautiful cheek.

"M… Mado?" Aura said, before slumping onto the ground, blood gurgling from her mouth.

 _She'll live._ Ace thought, even as Akira reloaded and shot three of the remaining Doves. Ace was able to catch one of them with a rinkaku, tearing part of the woman's lower leg off. As she turned, one of the publishing house staff, a terrified looking woman around the same age as Mado, made a run for it, directly into the line of fire of the female Doves ukaku. Ace watched the Investigator track the movement, and her finger began to squeeze the trigger.

Ace, still in the process of healing his arms, used his rinkaku to throw his body upwards into the line of fire, his chest and face being stitched by dozens of tiny needles. By this point, Akira had advanced forward, and killed the Dove with a shot to the back of the head.

"T- Thank you!" The woman yelled, taking a moment to bow, and then fled out the front doors, to who knew where, as she was now a fugitive. Akira came over after finishing off the last of the Investigators, kneeling down beside him.

"I don't know why Haise is allied with you, and I don't really care," She whispered, "If you so much as take a tiny step out of line, I'm going to try to kill…"

"Akira! Ace!" Ken said, appearing from the stairwell, a pretty, but disheveled woman in…

 _Eto!_ Ace said, finally putting the pieces together in his mind. Hinami had shown him a picture of Sen Yakatsuki during their train ride to Nagoya, but even though Ace had seen _quite_ a bit of Eto, he couldn't believe that…

"Oh, is he hurt?" Eto said, using a sweet voice that was nothing like what she'd sounded like during their time together. "Mr. Kaneki, can you help him?"

"Uh…" Ken said, seemingly unsure of how to respond. "No need, Miss… Takatsuki."

Akira looked at the two new arrivals, then back down at Ace.

"Let's get out of here." Akira said coldly. They'd apprised her of the basic outline of what was going on, and she had revealed the reason she had been arrested, during their ride to the Publishing house. "You do have a schedule to keep."

They fled outside, Ace being supported between Akira and Ken, getting into one of the CCG SUVs instead of the little sedan they had been using. Ace took the front passenger seat, his right arm finally healing properly, allowing him to hold the submachine gun they'd found in a rack in the trunk.

"Touka," Ken said, having dialed his phone one handed, "We'll be at the rendezvous point in twenty five. Have everyone ready to move by then."

Ace pulled out his own phone, dialing the usual number.

"Control," He said, knowing his voice must sound incredibly weak, "Reporting target secured. Moving with… local resistance to Yokosuka Base. Multiple battles with CCG units. What's… the password to get past the Marines?"

Control paused for a moment before speaking.

"Alpha-Delta-Packers. Radio channel is in Search Range 3. They're expecting you to come North on Interstate 16." Control said simply. "Senior Agent Tomlinson has just been informed of your impending arrival. Your orders are to assist him with the evacuation."

 _Evacuation?_

"Shit!" Ken said, swerving the SUV and nearly rolling them over as an armored personnel carrier crossed the street in front of them. Ace steadied himself with a hand against the roof, eyes probing down the cross street. A hard rain began to pelt their vehicle

"Oh, crap. Looks like they're rolling in the big guns, Control." Ace said, as a platoon of tanks followed the platoon of APCs down the road, the commander of each vehicle riding head and shoulders out of the vehicle for better visibility. "Eight plus," Ace paused, seeing similar groups of vehicles on several cross streets ahead of him, "Make that twenty plus armored vehicles heading towards Yokosuka."

"Understood, thanks for the warning. Control, out."

The sun was beginning to set as they met up with Touka and the others. Irimi, Yomo, Banjou and his three followers were split between two vehicles. While Touka and Hinami were driving Renji's silver sedan, with a rather angry looking Ayato in the back seat. Everyone exited their vehicles, though Eto and Akira hung back.

Hinami ran to Ace, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. Ken and Touka shared a similar, if less openly tender, moment.

"I was so worried." She whispered into his neck, before locking eyes with Akira. "Why is _she_ here?

"I know, I know, just be cool," Ace rubbed her back. "It's okay. Everything is going to be okay. It looks like my people are being pulled out _en masse_. And we're going with them."

"They'll take us?" Irimi asked from where she stood, nearly touching Renji.

Ace nodded. Looking up at the darkened skies, he knew now was the perfect time to slip past the Japanese Army. He could hear the roar of jet engines and the buzzing of helicopters heading towards the naval base already.

"Everyone load up. No headlights, except for the lead car." When Ken made a motion as if to get back in the driver seat, Ace shook his head. "I've got to lead. I'm the only one who knows the code."

Ken nodded, taking the front handed seat. Ace was about to get in, but Hinami grabbed his hand.

"Ace, can't I ride with you?" She said, looking towards Akira.

"I'll ride with Touka and Ayato." Ken said, leaving the front door open for Hinami. When she approached him, Ace could hear him whisper something to her, something that made her eyes open wide. Ace climbed into the SUV and restarted the engine. Setting his phone on the dashboard with the directions on it, he flicked his lights on, and pulled out onto the street.

Tires squealed as Ace took the first corner hard, barely avoiding an oncoming military truck. He saw one of the soldiers in the rear bed point towards the group, but Ace took another turn and they disappeared from sight. However, they ran into a column of armored vehicles on the other side.

" _Shit_." Ace said, swerving up onto the sidewalk. Checking his mirrors, he saw all of the others had made the turn with him, and were now flying down the sidewalk. Ahead, one of the APCs began to turn, belching a cloud of diesel smoke as it attempted to block their path. Its turret began to swing around as well, the barrel of its autocannon seemingly pointing directly between Ace's eyes.

A line of fire shot across the street from a window on the opposite side of the stret, connecting with the top of the APC and blowing through its side. It came to a sudden halt, and began to belch flames as its ammunition cooked off.

Another rocket exploded into the wall in front of Ace, and he was forced to swerve around the burning APC.

"Who's shooting at us?" Hinami asked, eyes wide with fright.

"I don't know!" Ace yelled, slamming on the brakes as another rocket sailed by in front of them. "But they're _really, really_ starting to piss me off!"

The submachine gun in his lap smashed out the driver side window, his rinkaku holding it rather loosely as he extended them over the top of the car and pulled the trigger. He had no hope of hitting anything, but only had to get the bastard shooting at them to duck down long enough to get past the…

"Look out!" Akira cried out, as the transport truck from earlier nearly slammed into them. The troops in its rear compartment aiming their weapons. Ace floored it, his rinkaku throwing the submachine gun into the troop compartment, the empty weapon caving in an unlucky soldiers face. Then his other rinkaku struck, arching over the roof of their car to reach, turning the rear compartment into a bloodbath as he tore the men apart. Pulling one of the men towards the car, Ace decapitated him, and then pulled the radio from the soldier's combat webbing.

Another rocket was fired from somewhere behind them, as the rain seemed to increase in force even further, but it sailed off overhead once again. Ahead of them, the night blossomed with cannon fire as someone finally opened fire. Ace swerved around a corner, driving at high speed through an industrial warehousing area. Hundreds of soldiers were arrayed there, seemingly waiting for their signal to attack, along with dozens of armored vehicles. And none of the soldiers seemed ready for them, as the group of cards sped past without a shot fired.

Looking in the rearview mirror, he saw Akira holding on tightly to her seat, while Eto seemed strangely at ease. Hinami reached over as they through another cross street and gripped his arm for a moment, the two of them having a momentary eye contact.

"Take the wheel, Hinami."

Fiddling with the handheld radios dials, he set it to the channel Control had told him about, and then clicked it. A hissing noise escaped the device, before it clicked once.

"Identify yourself!" A loud voice yelled from the little speaker, in English.

"This is Agent Lincoln of the FBGI." Ace said quietly. "Identifying Alpha-Delta-Packers."

"Reading you loud and clear," A different, much deeper voice, said when the radio clicked again, "What can we do for you, son?"

"I'm coming north towards the rendezvous point, three miles out in a small convoy of vehicles, but am encountering heavy resistance. Can you bring a little more rain?"

"Feed us the coordinates or a cross street and we'll do what we can."

Ace gave them an area four city blocks wide, all of them swarming with Japanese army vehicles and soldiers.

"Roger. Clear the area. Ranging shot going out… _now._ " Ace thought he heard the thump in the distance, but when the artillery shell arched down and blasted into that group of Japanese Army soldiers, he felt the entire vehicle jump slightly.

"That's it, bring it!" Ace yelled into the radio, taking his final turn onto route 16. Accelerating hard, he saw that all the others were still following, as the night seemed to explode in front of them.

"Ace…" Hinami said, patting his arm and pointing towards a building to their right.

 _Clowns._ Ace thought, before swerving to avoid another rocket. Dozens of Clowns lined the roofs and fire escapes of the buildings all along their route. And each of them seemed to have a weapon of some kind in their hand. Behind them, a rocket slammed into the asphalt under Yomo's vehicle flipping it up onto its side and into a vehicle shattering roll.

Ace slammed on the brakes, just as a rocket exploded ahead of them, lifting the front end of their SUV off of the ground.

"Everyone, out! Hinami, protect the others!" Ace said, pushing Hinami out of the vehicle and then following her out the passenger door. A rocket flashed down, blowing through the SUV in a gout of fire and shards of metal. Ace took the brunt of the explosion, his koukaku appendages expanding to cover most of his head and upper torso, while Hinami used her butterfly-like koukaku shields to cover Akira and Eto.

Looking upwards, he saw a trio of Clowns dropping into the street near him, while many more dropped down around the others.

"Hellooooooo!" One of them yelled over the rain. Ace snarled, seeing the familiar scowling mouth of Roma Hoito from under the Clown mask. "Seems you've acquired some pretty strange friends, Houndy-poo. A Dove _and_ the One-Eyed Owl?"

 _Shit_. Ace thought, his rinkaku striking ruthless at her, but her own kagune deflected his upwards. However, she didn't see Hinami's rinkaku as they plowed through her torso. Hinami ripped to the side, tearing Roma in half. Ace looked at her, stunned by the rage that clouded her pretty features. Roma, even nearly cut in two, still smirked at them.

"Oh-ho, seems you're a little sore about the last time we saw each other," Roma sneered, "Well, I think it's time we picked up where we left off!"

The Clowns attacked as one, twirling towards them like they were in the center ring of a circus. Ace found himself fighting two of the Clowns, while Hinami dealt with Roma.

Confusion reigned as they fought in the pounding rain. Ace was forced backwards by the two Clowns, his strength quickly waning from repeated Kakuja use. Hinami continued her ferocious assault against Roma, her rinkaku literally tearing the other woman limb from limb, but every time a limb was torn away, hundreds of small kagune reached out from the wound and pulled it back into place. Dozens more Clowns dropped from above, joining the fray around the other three vehicles. With a violent jab with his armor covered hands Ace partially decapitated one Clown, before spinning low to avoid the other Clown's own strike. Savaging the other man with a rake of his claws, he finished him off with a blow that caved in part of his chest.

Looking to his left, he saw Eto smiling at him.

"You're enjoying this, aren't you?" Ace said as his breathing became labored. Eto shrugged, and Ace was forced to turn his attention back to the fight as Touka nearly knocked him over as she came flying through the air, he ukaku seeming far larger than when they had first met. Hundreds of shards rained down on an unsuspecting Clown. Her brother landed nearby, with Ken joining them a moment later. The Gourmet and Banjou and his three followers came running up, rounding out their group. Yomo and Irimi were still locked in battle with a dozen Clowns, and Hinami was above them battling Roma.

"We need to get out of here, they're just slowing us down so that CCG and the Army can get us." Ken said, his massive rinkaku slithering out of his back, looking like a massive claw. Then something began to change about him, and a kakuja mask began to appear around his head, " _Go!"_

Ace leapt upwards, his kagune changing. He landed on the rooftop above them, and his rinkaku moved harshly, sending Hinami falling towards them. Ace caught her, and then turned and began to run towards the distant naval base.

"Come on!" He turned and yelled at the others, dropping Hinami onto her feet when she began to struggle in his grip. "He's going to buy us the time we need!"

As he ran, Ace used his kagune to retrieve a few pieces of meat, and felt the gratifying sensation of his hunger abating.

"Ace, we can't just leave the three of them!" Touka said, even as she ran beside him.

"Once you all are safe, I'll go back out!" He responded hastily, having seen the headlights appear ahead of them. The entire group slid to a halt, but Ace's heart thumped excitedly as he saw the familiar form of a Humvee without doors, leading five other nearly identical vehicles, appear ahead of him.

"Alpha-Delta-Packers!" Ace roared, holding his hands up in the air. The machine gunner in the turret of the lead vehicle trained his mount towards him, his fingers moving towards the triggers, but didn't as the man in the passenger seat tapped his leg.

"Agent Lincoln, a pleasure to meet you." The man said, stepping out of the passenger seat. He was of average height, with brown hair that was greying at the temples. Her wore the same combat fatigues as the rest of the soldiers, but lacked any kind of rank insignia. He reached a hand out, and Ace took it.

"Nice to meet you as well, Senior Agent Tomlinson." Ace replied hurriedly. "Can I borrow this Humvee for a minute?"

A piercing shriek split the night, and something exploded behind them. Tomlinson took a single look at this, and then nodded.

"I'll get your people loaded up. You've got five minutes."

Ace nodded, taking Tomlinson's seat. A pistol sat on the dashboard, Ace took it, and made sure it was loaded. Behind him, sitting haphazardly on the seat, was a rocket launcher, with two other rounds lying next to it on the seat. Ace grabbed it, and held it at the ready.

"Punch it, soldier." Ace said to the driver, who gave him a sideways glance. The gunner leaned down, taking one look at the ragged man now sitting in the seat, and then put his head back outside into the clean night air. Ace leaned back and shouted, "Hey, shoot the ones wearing clown masks!"

The Humvee accelerated smoothly, and they crossed the distance that had taken five minutes to run in less than a minute. Gunfire echoed off of the buildings as the gunner cut loose with the fifty-cal in the turret, sending several Clowns tumbling to the ground, wounded, but not dead. Yomo and Irimi were ahead, slowly being worn down by a crowd of Clowns that had grown to nearly three dozen in number. Ken was nowhere to be seen, though he had left quite a mess, as Ace looked up at the three buildings that were nearly ready to topple over. The one in the middle, which was poised over where the main fighting was going on, seemed to have only a single support remaining on its front left side.

"Drive through them!" Ace ordered, as he felt the driver begin to let off the gas. For his plan to work, things would have to work out _just_ right.

The first Clown bounced off the armored bumper of the Humvee, followed by a handful more before they made it into the pocket where Yomo and Irimi were losing. The driver turned the wheel hard, tapping the brakes to send them skidding around to face the direction they'd just come from.

"Get in!" Ace said as they looked up in surprise, blood running down both of their faces. They leapt up with pained movements into the Humvee's bed, still fighting Clowns off with their ukaku. Ace killed a particularly aggressive Clown with his rinkaku as he put one leg out of the vehicle to steady himself.

" _Shit!_ " He cursed as his first rocket missed the support. As he reloaded, everything seemed to slow down. The sound of the Clowns moving, the chugging roar of the machine gun and that breaking glass noise of Yomo and Irimi's kagune momentarily overwhelmed his senses, as he struggled to reload the rocket. His rinkaku slapped a Ghoul away, and then a familiar aroma struck his nostrils.

" _Itori_?" Ace said aloud as he finished reloading and brought the rocket up to his shoulder once again. This rocket flew straight and true, blowing a huge chunk of concrete out of the support. A massive crack that appeared after the explosion widened even as Ace watched.

" _Go!_ " Ace said, throwing the rocket launcher into the face of a Clown as he attempted to grab onto the rapidly accelerating vehicle. The entire building began to sag, nine stories of concrete suddenly beginning to lean across the street. The Clowns below took one look at it, and attempted to flee the thousands of tons of death falling towards them. Only a handful made it, and Ace heard satisfying screams as several Clowns were trapped half-under the wreckage. Pieces of debris began to fall onto the rapidly retreating vehicle even as a cloud of dust enveloped them.

"Jesus!" The driver said in English, as sweat poured down his brow and he wiped it away on the sleeve of his fatigues. "You're a regular fuckin' _wreckin' ball_ , man!"

Ace remained silent, looking up at the night sky as the Humvee sped back towards safety.


	20. Chapter 20

"I am he. And I want no part of what you're offering."

Ken held the head of Roma Hoito by the hair as he looked at Itori and Uta, and the three other vaguely familiar Clowns.

"Then you've truly decided to take up that mantle?" Itori said, before laughter burst from her lips. "You're a _fool_ , Ken Kaneki! A deliciously misguided fool."

Holding his silence, Ken looked towards where someone, probably Ace, had dropped one of the buildings he and Roma had damaged in their battle. He had so many decisions to make after what he and Eto had spoken about at the publishing house, but the most important of those was protecting his friends.

 _If you do as I ask, I will protect them, even from the American._ Eto had said, and Ken hadn't detected any deceit in what she said.

"I'm going to do it because I wish to. Now go away."

"Alright, but we won't be far…" She said, pulling her mask back onto her face. "And our offer is only good for a limited time."

* * *

Ace and Senior Agent Tomlinson sat alone inside the office the elder Ghoul had taken. It was minimally furnished, but even so, Tomlinson had apparently taken time to make it homier.

"She just turned three," Tomlinson said, seeing Ace looking at the picture of the Agent with his wife and child, "Going to start school soon. Now, I need you to make a full report.

Detailing the last few months was rough, especially when Roma had tortured him, but he got through it in less than fifteen minutes.

"And that's really it, Sir." Ace said when he'd finished. He'd even been honest and revealed the relationship he had formed with Hinami.

"Well… The Agency will confirm the veracity of all this once I send it to them," Tomlinson said mildly, "But I believe that everything you've reported is accurate. Now… On to our current predicament."

"We have around two thousand soldiers and nearly three times that civilians. And we're going to evacuate them all. In two days." He looked down at his watch, "Actually, in less than forty-seven hours."

"Forty seven hours to evacuate nearly ten thousand people?" Ace said, aghast. "How?"

"The _George Washington_ and _Ronald Reagan_ Carrier groups are currently heading towards us. They're leading enough transport ships to get everyone away reasonably comfortably. Unfortunately, everyone knows they're coming." He paused, rubbing his eyes as Ace sat in silence, trying to pieces together how things were going to go down. "And the Japanese, well, the CCG at least, has called in help. The Navy is going to have to fight past the Chinese and Russians."

 _Damn._ Ace thought.

"And the Japanese army is gearing up to assault us finally."

"Is the CCG deploying with them?" Ace asked.

"It looks like they're assigning groups of experienced Investigators with each Army unit. And we really have nothing to counter them with, other than the two of us. Agent Carter isn't useful in combat."

His assistant, a frumpy little woman who was technically higher-ranked than Ace due to her nearly four years as an Agent. But she had barely been able to look at Ace when they'd shaken hands.

"The Ghouls I brought with me will fight. And as you saw, they're all as experienced as most Agents. But I've promised them asylum."

Tomlinson nodded, having seen Ken return from his fight with Roma earlier. Ace felt a pang of regret that he hadn't been the one to kill her, but…

 _The bitch is dead, that's what counts._ Ace thought maliciously.

"Alright, we can take care of the details later, now go eat. I had Carter prepare our meals separately from the base personnel, and I believe she already has those Ghouls corralled in there. Get some shuteye when you're done, because we have a staff meeting in the early morning."

Ace nodded, and got up out of the chair and headed out onto Yokosuka's main thoroughfare. A tent city had been hastily assembled over the past few weeks to hold the influx of American, British and other allied citizens who were fleeing Japan. It was dirty, but luckily it was temporary, and much less permanent than death. He smelt Ghouls among them, that familiar stench wafting on the air.

"Ace!" Hinami threw her arms around him when he reappeared.

"Hey, Hina," He said, returning the embrace. The others, minus Akira and Eto, sat in the cafeteria he'd been directed to by Agent Carter. Looking at the others, Ace said, "Good job last night guys."

"What's the plan now?"

"We fight." Ace responded to Irimi's question. "The evacuation fleet will be here in forty seven hours, and we have to defend the civilians until then. Is everyone still in?"

"Will we be offered asylum for sure?" Shuu, the Gourmet, asked from where he sulked. His clothes were ragged, and he looked absolutely miserable, nothing like the arrogant Ghoul Ace had met months before. "Or are we fighting to be left behind?"

"It will all be taken care of." Ace reassured. "But, we need to be prepared. There are only a handful of us, and a few thousand soldiers, versus the entire weight of the CCG and the Japanese Army. So… Let's eat!"

* * *

"Alright folks, it looks like our Japanese friends are getting ready to make their move."

Brigadier General Allen Brigsby was a typical soldier. Tall, lanky and having a grizzled look about him, from his grey hair to blue eyes. The uniform he wore was crisp, in contrast to the loose fitting combat fatigues that Ace now wore. He and the Brigadier, along with Senior Agent Tomlinson and a dozen other officers, were crowded around a video conference table in the Base Commandants office. The interactive display that made up the entire surface of the table had a map of the Base and its surrounding areas, with approximate locations of both American and Japanese units. Even a small British flag was visible, as there had been a group of SAS units cross training when the blockade commenced.

Still docked at the port were the handful of ships of the Seventh Fleet, several showing damage from bomb and missile attacks. One destroyer had been unlucky in the first attack, and had been sunk, but luckily the carrier that was usually the flagship of the Seventh had been in Hawaii for repairs. A troop transport that looked like a miniature carrier was still docked nearby, however, her deck filled with aircraft.

General Brigsby swept a light pointer across the table in a broad slash.

"And frankly, we're up shit creek without a paddle."

"That seems unnecessarily defeatist, General." A Colonel said, "The defender always has the advantage…"

"But not against _this_ overwhelming of a force." He said, indicating the nearly fifteen thousand soldier strong force that the Japanese Army was besieging them with. "And with the evacuation force another two days out… I don't know how long we can last, even with our positions."

 _He's already counting us out._ Ace had seen the defenses that had been constructed, and had to agree that while they were impressive, they'd be rolled under by sheer numbers.

"So, I think it's time we finalize our battle plan." He said simply, shifting his gaze around at those assembled. "How can we hold out against the combined weight of the Japs and the CCG? Any ideas?"

"The situation is truly untenable." Agent Tomlinson spoke into the quiet that followed. Although he was ostensibly a civilian, the FBGI was highly respected within the armed forces, and the respect the officers assembled showed the pair of Ghouls was impressive. "But that doesn't mean we can't make it."

Fiddling with the table display, he chose a different feature and began to highlight various buildings that stood along the main roadways into the base.

"My young colleague here gave me an idea," He said as he worked, "These buildings are all abandoned, as near as we can tell, and aren't good for much else. At least not to us. So, we can either drop them with concentrated artillery, or by sending teams in to demolish them."

"You mean to trap us in here?" An Army Colonel said, shifting uncomfortable, "That sounds like a bad plan to me. My tanks need space to maneuver."

Ace listened raptly as Tomlinson issued a stiff rebuke.

"Your tanks are superfluous, Colonel Flynn," He said coldly, "They are outnumbered several to one, and we are _barely_ maintaining air superiority. Only the _Iwo Jima_ and her planes are making sure of that, and once we lose it, which we _will_ , than your tanks are as good as coffins."

"Listen," Colonel Flynn responded angrily, "Why are we even listening to this trumped up monster? We-"

"Senior Agent Tomlinson is a veteran of four major and three minor operations." General Brigsby cut off Flynn with a handslap on the table. "I've personally worked with him once before, during Operation Pursue Freedom in Somalia. His team was singlehandedly responsible for getting our men out of that stadium. Now shut your mouth, Colonel."

"As I was saying…" Tomlinson locked eyes with the Colonel, his kakugan appearing momentarily. "The heavy armor will set up blocking points behind the rubble piles, with infantry dug in around them. Agent Lincoln can lead the teams to drop the buildings, as he apparently has _quite_ the knack for destroying property."

All eyes turned to Ace, and he met each levelly.

"I think my men can 'elp with that." A voice said, as another figure stepped out of the darkness and saluted. Ace immediately noticed something was… _off_ about him. "Lieutenant Sean Morbsy, Special Air Service. We've been meanin' ta' get back at the fookin' Doves."

 _He smells like Hairu Ihei…_

"All…right. SAS and Agent Lincoln will drop the northern two buildings," Tomlinson agreed after a moment's hesitation. "I will lead a team to the Southern buildings. Agent Lincoln, will your allies be willing to assist us?"

Ace nodded as all eyes turned to him.

"Well, General, if you agree with all of this, then I think we have a plan."

* * *

"Well, my family, and the families o' most of me men, is part Ghoul. That's why we're in the SAS. Not alot o' other choices."

Ace had cornered Lieutenant Morbsy outside of the commander center, interrogating him about why his smell was off. The other man, taller than Ace and thin, had seemed perplexed.

"So, you're a half-Ghoul?" Ace was stunned. Ghoul-Human relations had been illegal in the United States since the late 19th Century, with stiff fines and imprisonment waiting for anyone who even tried. "How…"

"Not half, a quarter." Morbsy answered, scratching his chin, "Me grandfather was a Ghoul."

 _Multiple generations?_

"And how are you… part-Ghoul's treated?" His curiosity had gotten the better of him. "What do the Humans think of you all?"

Morbsy laughed.

"They treat us pretty shit, if you ask me!" He exclaimed, "We're stronger than any human. But we don't have kagune, and don't eat flesh. And yet we're still subject to the same laws as full-blood Ghouls."

Ace bid the soldier farewell, and headed back towards the barracks that everyone was being quartered in. There were a dozen small rooms with a pair of bunks and, inevitably, couples had paired off into them. He couldn't say that he'd expected for Yomo and Irimi to become one, but they'd gone and done it anyways. Touka and Ken shared a room, while Banjou, Ayato, Shuu and the others all shared another. He and Hinami's was the farthest from the large meeting hall, but even its sparse walls were better than sleeping outside.

"It's time to go." Ace said simply when the others looked up at him.

* * *

"Stinger One, Hound One, this is Bulldog Actual, the diversion force is moving out. Begin your advance."

Ace let out a breath that he'd been holding since the digital screen on his watch read midnight. The diversion force, with Touka, Ayato, Yomo, Irimi and Banjou included, was supposed to have begun their assault on a CCG defensive position at least thirty minutes ago. Admittedly, it had been the largest of the three American forces advancing into the night, but it had left Ace tapping his feet in frustration as he waited.

Four tanks led the advance of Ace's column, with Ace riding in a Humvee directly behind, with three more Humvees trailing him. Taking up the rear, a pair of APC's carried the SAS squad. Above them, several attack helicopters orbited, waiting to offer their support.

"Make sure you stay behind me, alright?" Ace said to Hinami, concern filling his voice. Ken and the Gourmet were assisting Stinger One, Agent Tomlinson, in his own assault.

"I know." Hinami replied, even as the ground shook and the sky lit up. Artillery from the base had begun to pound enemy positions, and dozens of flares now hung in the sky, lighting up the area above the CCG's defensive positions to the southeast.

The convoy rolled ahead, eyes and guns probing the darkness using the small amount of light that reached them from the flares.

"Hound One, Guardian Two, we've got movement ahead of you. Twenty plus foot mobiles!"

Guardian Two was one of the four attack helicopters assigned to Ace's group.

"Pitbull One," Ace radioed the lead tank, "Take'm! Everyone else, provide covering fire!"

 _Damn, we barely made it a half-mile._ Ace cursed to himself as he made sure the magazine on his submachine gun was seated properly. The tanks in front of them accelerated, tearing up the asphalt of the street with their immense weight, and the lighter units following matched the speed. A tanks main gun _boomed_ from ahead of them, shattering dozens of windows on the buildings to either side. Hinami flinched, but Ace reached out and grabbed her gloved hand. He didn't even care that the driver and the gunner had seen their momentary sign of affection.

"Pitbull One, setup a blocking position just past the target. Everyone else, lock and load."

Ace scrambled out of the Humvee as the sound of small arms, and _not_ so small arms, fire echoed through the street. Long lines of traces stabbed from the assault group, and towards it. The gunner manning the Humvee's gun let loose a long burst that made Ace's ears, even with the earbuds that allowed him to talk to his group, ache. Hinami, true to her word, was right behind him as they darted for cover.

"Guardian, we could use some support down here!" Ace exclaimed, as the incoming fire redoubled in intensity.

* * *

"It seems the Americans are advancing along three fronts. The Army is falling back on their own defensive positions."

Itsuki Marude cursed, slamming his hand down on the console.

"Where are the Chinese and Russian Investigators?" He demanded, looking at little footage he was able to see. Several figures moved like wraiths among the Army, reaping a horrible toll on the wholly unprepared soldiers. "Get them into action, _now_!"

 _No Investigators in the path of any of them. We never thought the Americans would be crazy enough to_ attack! _Not when we have them outnumbered ten to one!_

"They're ten minutes out, Itsuki." A familiar voice said. Kiyoko Aura, thin and far paler than he'd ever seen her before, stepped in. One of her arms was bandaged, and Marude could tell she'd been heavily injured. "Arima was with them."

" _Arima is back?"_ Itsuki responded, a smile creeping across his face, he let out a cheer that the rest of his command staff took up in a ragged chorus. "We can finally end this!"

Aura seemed less than enthused, but accepted the chair that he offered her. Itsuki motioned with his head for his staff to get lost, and they followed his orders without question.

"I don't know what in the hell is going on, Itsuki," Aura said, looking at the man who had, for many years, been her on-again, off-again, secret lover. "But… I don't know if even Arima can stand against what's brewing. We're getting reports that all of Tokyo is experiencing unrest. The book that that damn Sen Takatsuki secretly published and distributed has seemingly lit a fire under Ghoul and Ghoul sympathizers alike."

"Kiyoko, how were you injured?" Itsuki asked softly, "The reports were… vague."

He watched her face change, until it settled on a vaguely annoyed expression. But he saw the rage and anger, the betrayal behind her eyes.

"I attempted to apprehend that damned author… But, Hellhound arrived behind us, with… Akira Mado."

"That damned Hellhound!" Marude's indignation was palpable, but Kiyoko seemed to clear it away with a pained swipe of her hand.

"It was Mado who did this. I had Hellhound dead-to-rights, and she shot me. Then… I heard her, Hellhound, the author, and… Haise Sasaki leave the publisher together."

Marude looked at her, incredulous.

"Haise? You mean...?"

Kiyoko nodded.

"Tonight, your men may face the Centipede."

* * *

The helicopters swooped down, gun roaring, until they were seemingly close enough to touch. After a moment of firing, the fire seemed to slacken.

"Move!" Ace roared into his throat mic, his koukaku appearing and forming into a shield as he charged across the twenty or so feet to the foyer of their target. Half the SAS squad were right behind him, surprisingly able to keep up with him. Hinami, having fallen behind, was shielding herself with a pair of her koukaku wings, and Ace felt a moment of concern when a bullet sparked off of it. But she threw herself through the door without any injury.

"Set charges!" Lieutenant Morbsy ordered, cutting through Ace's momentary consternation. "We've got five minutes! Agent Lincoln, would you mind setting the main charge?"

Morbsy hefted the fifty pound block of explosives underhand to Ace, who caught it gingerly.

"Hinami, watch my back." Ace hurtled towards the huge main pillar that formed the core of the building.

"Contact! Enemy choppers incoming," Guardian One cut in on their channel, "Twenty plus troop transports! Guardian Three, let's get their escorts!"

Ace cursed as the building shivered. He drove a rinkaku into the main pillar, and hollowed out a cavity large enough for the charge to fit in. Having done that, he checked that the detonator was still secure, and signaled the others to retreat, pulling Hinami bodily along when she hesitated.

One of the tanks had been destroyed as it attempted to fall back, but its crew had gotten out safely and were taking cover behind it. The SAS and soldiers had formed a defensive line across the street, and were pouring fire at the advancing Army. So far, they were holding them off.

But the dozens of Investigators who were fast-roping down from the helicopters both in front and behind them were another story. A rocket flared from the soldiers, and Ace watched with satisfaction as one of the transports plummeted to the street, Investigators still struggling against the ropes that were pulling them to their death. Even with that lucky shot, too many Investigators were making it to the ground.

Coming to a stop, Ace carefully picked his targets and took down two of the Investigators who were between them and home with well-placed bursts. Behind him, Hinami was shaking as she covered his back with her kagune.

 _Why? She's been in a fight before…_ Ace thought, regretting having brought her along.

"What's wrong, Hina?"

"I… I've never been in a battle like this…" She answered, the fear in her voice betraying the resolute set of her jaw. "This is even worse than an extermination operation."

Ace shrugged, then grunted in pain as an ukaku Quinque's shards pierced his shoulder. Ace decided there was no helping it now, and leapt towards the Investigators. His body was pierced by dozens of bullets and ukaku shards, but the momentary pain was necessary, and faded nearly as quickly as it arrived. Ace landed amid a group of three of the ukaku wielders.

" _Lā shǐ_! _"_ One of the Investigators screamed as Ace killed the other two.

 _Chinese? Damn, they brought in reinforcements!_

His rinkaku fileted the third Chinese Investigator, but five more charged him, wielding more suitable weapons. Ace twirled away from their weapons, stabbing back with reckless zeal. After a moment, five bodies lay on the ground, unmoving, as Ace squared off against

"Hellhound!" A large Investigator, wielding a heavy-looking sword Quinque, "I am Special Class Sūn Démíng, myself and my squad will be your executioners!"

Ace cocked his head to the side, kakugan appearing for the first time.

"You will, will you? Then come."

Sūn moved with inhuman speed, his squad following. They spread out around an unmoving Ace, prepared for his attack. But it didn't come, and so they moved in for the kill.

Ace blocked Sūn's attack with his bare hand, the blade of his sword cutting into his hand. Sūn looked shocked as his Quinque was broken, snapped with a clenched fist. His allies moved in as well, striking for killing blows. But rinkaku dispatched them with contemptuous ease, before wrapping around Sūn. Ace's kakuja began to form, strange lightning discharges dancing across his body as Sūn struggled to escape. The mask enclosed Ace's head, and his sense of balance changed as his body grew.

"D-Demon!" Sūn said, before Ace ripped his head off with the kakujas jaws, swallowing it whole. He let out a roar that seemed to rebound from wall to wall, bringing the battle behind him to a momentary pause. The other Chinese Investigators, seeing what had to of been their superior slain with such ease, tried to flee, but Ace caught them with a leap.

Stalking back towards the fight, blood dripping from his teeth and claws, he saw that Hinami had barely moved, sheltering behind her koukaku. She looked up at him with fear, but that seemed to subside when he nodded at her.

 _My control of this form has increased, my thoughts aren't jumbled like they used to be._ Ace thought of Eto, and what she'd done to him. _I'll have to ask her about that, soon._

"Helluva getup you got there, Agent," Morbsy called when he saw them. He and his squad were sheltering behind a destroyed Humvee. "Mind killin' these fucks for us?"

" _Rrreeeeetrrrreeeaaattttt._ " He said through his kakuja, the voice warbling and strange.

Ace ignored the man's response, and instead crouched down, propelling himself upwards and latching onto the building face before leaping again. He cleared the top of the nearest building, his rinkaku appearing behind him in the form of a massive tail. A rocket was fired at him, but it was hastily aimed and blew past his shoulder. Ace's counterattack didn't miss, dozens of rinkaku ripping through the crowd below before he landed.

"Down!" One of the Investigators just out of Ace's reach yelled to his allies, and Ace had no time to dodge out of the way as a Japanese tank snorted from around a corner, turret rotating to bring the barrel around. Ace brought an arm up a thick koukaku shield beginning to form, but the tanks cannon fired before it had had a chance to solidify.

 _Hinami…_

Light swallowed him as the massive shell pierced his still forming arm-shield, ran up the length of his arm, and exploded.

* * *

"Comeon!"

Hinami looked over her shoulder in time to see Ace's kakuja explode, blood spattering the buildings around as the giant form seemed to disappear.

" _No!_ " She screamed, wrenching her body around. The SAS trooper followed her gaze and cursed. He put a forceful hand on her shoulder, and started dragging her towards one of the APCs. Her legs went weak, and any thought of resistance dissolved in a haze of hysteric crying. Through her tears, she saw Ghoul Investigators pouncing, their Quinque flashing. Her heart began to beat more quickly, growing loud to the point that…

Her eyes flashed upwards as Guardian One and Two, hovering only ten meters above them, let loose a salvo of rockets, missiles and machine gun fire. The attack Doves were turned into bloody chunks, as the rockets and missiles destroyed the vehicles that had begun to push forward. When Guardian One and Two were done and had pulled upwards, they left an eerie, smoking ruin just past the target building.

A lone figure hobbled out of the smoke, shakily moving on broken and torn limbs. No skin remained anywhere on the figures body, only charred muscle and leaking organs. Ace, and it could only be him, took a few more steps before collapsing onto the ground.

"Shit." Hinami heard Lieutenant Morbsy say, taking his thumb off the trigger to the demolition charges. "Harby, McCoy, on me! Everyone else, cover us!"

When she moved to follow, Morbsy motioned for her to stay. Fear clutched at her, and so her feet remained planted in place.

 _Oh god, what if he's dead?_ Hinami thought, hands clutched to her chest as the three men advanced into the smoke.


	21. Chapter 21

Sean Morbsy moved through the smoke, eyes and ears straining as the sound of numerous boots grew louder. Growing up in the heart of London, one of the most anti-Ghoul areas in the whole of England, had been hard on him. But he'd learned to gauge how far a pair of booted feet were on only the sounds they made. So he knew that he and his allies had a few moments.

"Grab'm Harby," Sean ordered when they reached the barely human figure lying on the ground. "Be careful, he's a right mess!"

Something whistled by his ear, and he brought his rifle up, firing a burst towards where the knife had appeared from. Behind him, a scratching sound made Sean duck backwards, just as a large scythe slashed through the air above him.

"Shit!" Harby cursed as the blade of a Quinque appeared in the center of his chest. "Damn y-"

 _I told Command that we shouldn't have brought any normies with us!_

Sean didn't hear Harby's last words, as another blade, wielded by a tall, white eyed man, removed his head from his shoulders. Body moving with years of muscle memory, Sean's hand went to the blade on his back, smoothly drawing it downwards. At a foot and a half, it was nearly a sword, but was long and thin, like a dagger. It had also been a blade handed down for generations through his family.

Shots tore through the smoke as McCoy let loose with his rifle. His shots were deflected by the Dove's Quinques, and the sound of McCoy dropping his weapon to retrieve the blade from his back seemed to put pause to the battle.

The young, black haired man carrying the scythe eyed Agent Lincoln's body hungrily.

"I'm going to turn him into an _excellent_ Quinque!" He said gleefully, as his squad formed up around him.

"McCoy, we gotsta…" Morbsy began to say, not taking his eyes off the Doves.

"El-Tee, get moving." The short, stocky SAS trooper said. "I'll cover you."

Morbsy risked a look to the side at his fellow soldier, and seeing the sureness of his footing and face, Morbsy plucked Agent Lincolns body from the ground and bounded away.

* * *

"Multiple known Ghouls have been sighted with the main American offensive," The communications tech yelled as the Command Center seemed to explode into a hive of activity. Marude and Aura stood nearby, listening with pained expressions. "Mikasa and Hayato Squads have been wiped out!"

According to Marude's calculations, nearly two hundred of his fellow Investigators had been killed in just the last fifteen minutes. The situation was spiraling wildly out of control, as the Americans continued to ferociously attack, and their artillery bombarded the Japanese Army into submission. It was shaping up to be a massacre.

"Report from Cochlea!" A different comms tech said. The shocked look on his face drew Marude's attention. "They are under heavy assault! All outer defense teams have been destroyed!"

"What?" Marude said, before stepping closer, cursing himself. He'd been the one to pull the cream of Cochlea's defense teams into the Hellhound Extermination Mission. "What's going on? Is it the Americans?"

"Unknown, Special Class. Cochlea has been penetrated to the SS level, and," Marude watched as the screen in front of the tech went blank. "Cochlea has been completely lost!"

 _What in the hell is going on?_

"The First Quinx Squad under First Class Urie are moving to engage the Centipede!" A third tech called out. "Second Quinx Squad under Special Class Durbonovic is moving to engage Hellhound!"

* * *

"Fire on those fookin' Doves!"

Morbsy through himself and Agent Lincoln to the ground as the rest of his men and the Americans opened fire towards the squad of Doves. Their targets dodged out of the way and disappeared, leaving the headless body of McCoy on the pavement. The Japanese girl who had been with Agent Lincoln let out a pained noise, going to her knees beside the charred body.

"Where's the detonator?" His second in command, Sergeant Jones, asked, taking his knee beside Morbsy. "We gotta drop that building _now_. Word is the Japs and Doves are counterattacking finally."

In the distance, a beam of light erupted into the sky accompanied by a horrendous bellowing, and both of the remaining escort helicopters ceased to exist. Morbsy's eyes widened in horror, as both that sight and Jones statement struck him with palpable weight. Where _was_ the detonator?

His eyes flashed down to the Agent's hands, but they were a charred mess. Using a gloved hand, he pried them apart, the crackling of burnt skin sending waves of revulsion through Morbsy. As he was prying them apart, a drop of blood from a wound on his forehead fell onto the flesh. He nearly let go of the hand when it spasmed, the blood being sucked into the black, cracked skin.

"Shit!" Jones said, having seen the reaction. The Japanese girl had seen it too, and with grim determination stood, and, drawing a knife from one of her uniforms pockets, sliced open her right arm from wrist to elbow, blood and small chunks of flesh flowing down onto the body.

Morbsy leapt backwards, as did Jones and all of the other soldiers around, though the Japanese girl held firm, as the Agent's body seemed to erupt into a massive seizure. Kagune with mouths and… _teeth_ , burst from across the Agent's body, catching the blood and meat.

"Behind you!"

Morbsy barely had time to dodge as an ukaku shard buried itself into the side of the Humvee behind him. Doves and soldiers streamed out from the buildings to either side of them, and Morbsy felt pride as his men, the men he'd bled and fought with, went about their business and got to killing.

Hinami felt her heart racing as the blood streamed from her arm onto Ace's body. She'd nearly devolved into a weeping mess when she'd first seen what had become of him, even more broken than when Roma had gotten to him, but seeing how Ace had reacted to that soldiers blood…

 _I've never seen anyone react so violently during feeding_. She thought, seeing the strange little kagune mouths appear. _Is this because he's a kakuja? Or is it something else?_

"Hi…na…mi…" Ace's eyes opened as the skin across his body began to heal itself. His kakugan were strange, his pupils seeming roughly formed and… they were glowing. " _Run_."

She didn't know what drove her legs, but she found herself running. Soldiers and Doves were fighting with the SAS, who were being pushed steadily backwards. The tanks and vehicles were rumbling backwards, gunners and cannon firing steadily at targets out of sight.

Stopping and turning, she caught sight of Ace shakily standing, a mangled hole still through one side of his chest. The fighting had moved past him, but a Dove who had been late to the game leapt towards him, clearly hoping to finish the most dangerous threat on the field. Hinami was too far away to do anything except watch as that black blade flashed towards Ace's neck.

The dark haired Dove seemed to disappear in a shower of meat and blood, as Ace's rinkaku lacerated him in a hundred places and tore him to pieces. Even from this distance she could see that there was a ferocious head, almost like a snarling wolf, at the end of each rinkaku tentacle. It was grotesque, but she could see that as those rinkaku feasted on the Dove, the hole in Ace's chest healed with unnerving speed.

Hinami was forced to defend herself as a female Dove attacked, koukaku and rinkaku working in concert as she'd learned during her time with Aogiri Tree.

* * *

 _What… What is this?_

Ace. No, he wasn't Ace now. This was something else, something had awakened within him. He _was_ the Hellhound. It was surreal, almost as if Ace was watching his own body from outside itself. His mind seemed to be split.

A minor pain in his abdomen brought his attention back to the real world. A young man, likely around the same age, had buried a long, thin Quinque blade through his chest.

"It's the end, Hellhound." The man said, triumph written across his face as he drew the blade downwards, cleanly slicing Hellhound from shoulder to hip.

Hellhound let out a bellow of laughter as his body healed itself, kagune pulling it back together almost as fast as it was pulled apart.

"I _am_ the end." Ace heard himself snarl, before a massive rinkaku tentacle formed itself into the grotesque head of a wolf. It was horrific looking, almost malformed, with a pair of staring red eyes. It struck with blinding speed, leaving the Dove's legs standing alone like a pair of traffic cones. With a monstrous noise, the wolf's head swallowed the body and Quinque together, and then spiraled protectively around Ace's body.

"Mizurou! Hanbee! Motherfucker!" Ace watched as a dark haired, thin faced Dove carrying a scythe appeared from the smoke. Seeing the mangle remains at Ace's feet, he let out an inarticulate sound of rage and attacked, two other Doves with him following with their own bellows of anger. Ace didn't move a muscle, except for his right thumb.

He clicked the detonator, and suddenly he was surrounded by smoke, flames and dust.

"How could you, Sassan? Ginshi died, and now you betray us!"

Ken looked dispassionately at the Quinx Squad, and Saiko in particular, from amid the debris of the building the Senior American agent had just destroyed. The American soldiers and Agent had retreated already, the other Ghoul having given him a strange look when he'd said he was hanging around for a few moments. Shuu had ignored his request to return with the American, instead remaining nearby.

The Quinx had arrived not long after, with several new members. But Kuki, Saiko and Tooru were there, and looked at him with horror. Ken knew that he was an atrocious sight right now, covered in blood and with his kakuja armor streaming out behind him like a pair of tails.

"I'm not Sassan, anymore, Saiko," Ken said, his single kakugan glaring at them. "I'm Ken Kaneki."

"You're a traitor is what you are, Ghoul!" Kuki screamed, his kagune appearing. He had grown stronger since last Ken had seen him, and he attacked with a ferocity that made Ken take a step back…

…So he could drive the Quinx face first into the ground with one of his kakuja tails, feeling bone crunch against concrete.

"I am also not one to be trifled with, First Class Kuki Urie." Ken said, letting no emotion color his voice. "Do not become my enemy, for what I shall build will not tolerate interference."

With a final look towards his former comrades, he darted away into the darkness.

* * *

"Hinami…"

Ace looked down at the unmoving woman, as her body attempted to heal the horrific gash across her chest. The Quinx who had inflicted the wound lay beside her, head several feet away from the body. Hinami's eyes fluttered open, and she looked up at him.

Hundreds of bodies lay around them, a mix of SAS, US soldier, Dove and Japanese soldier. They covered the asphalt like a field of grotesque flowers, with a few moving and groaning periodically. He had been forced to watch as his body had swallowed a few of the injured whole, but when he'd seen Hinami, the other presence had disappeared.

"Can… Can we go home?" She asked weakly. Ace reached down and picked her up, gingerly cradling her head in one hand.

"Of course, Hina."

Holding her tightly, he marched down the street, stepping carefully over any bodies. A Humvee roared down the road, skidding to a stop. That British SAS officer was at the wheel, missing one of his ears and with a vicious slash across his face. Another wounded SAS trooper manned the vehicles gun.

"Get in!"

A scent reached Ace's nose, pungent and sweet at the same time. Someone had been drinking bloodwine, a gratuitous amount of it.

"Don't worry about me, I'm hungry," Ace lied, having had his fill of man-flesh, "Get her back to the base, please."

Morbsy nodded, throwing the truck into gear and squealing off into the darkness. Ace turned and headed towards where the stench was strongest. Halfway there, a whisper from above caused him to dodge aside.

"Getting a little paranoid, aren't we?" Itori said from her perch on a building stanchion. "I only came to talk."

"I figured you'd be here. Bitch." Ace said coldly, sending a flurry of rinkaku towards her. "This game that you're playing ends _here_."

She rolled from her perch and fell the twenty or so feet to the ground, landing lightly on her feet. His rinkaku tore a chunk of concrete from her perch and sent it raining down on her. But she didn't flinch or cower, and he noted that she wore a skintight outfit, like the battlesuits that Agent's usually wore. And around her neck was a Clown mask with pointed teeth and jagged chin.

"I know it was you and Uta that shot down that plane," Ace said angrily, "And I know that you're both Clowns, Ken mentioned it to me. And you wanna know something _funny_ ," Itori gave him a sly look, as if she were a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar who truly didn't care about the consequences. "I _hate_ fucking Clowns."

"You know, Arima just arrived back from wherever he was," Itori said, giving him a sultry look, "Apparently he was testing out a new weapon."

Ace struck, the evil looking wolf's head kagune forming. Itori darted to the side, her own kagune being used as extra limbs to enhance her mobility.

 _She's like Ken. Faster than I am._ Ace cursed himself, even as the wolf's head buried itself into the concrete. Itori let out a giggle as she somersaulted away from the recovered head.

"It's funny, you fight like your father. But you can't break what you can't hit!"

Her statement brought him to a grinding halt.

"What do you know about my father?" Ace asked, winding the wolf's head protectively around himself. Itori wiped some dirt off her outfit, before provocatively unzipping the top of her outfit. Ace snarled at her. " _What do you know?!"_

"I know that he tried to escape through the sewers." She said, "And that we Clowns stopped him from escaping."

Another figure appeared beside her.

"Your father was an unfortunate victim of circumstance," Uta said, his black eyes looking like a sharks. "We wanted him dead, and the CCG wanted him alive."

"We compromised." He finished mysteriously. "And left him, bloody and beaten, for the CCG to pick up."

Ace shook with anger.

 _No. Don't let them rile you up. That's what they want._ Ace beat down the flood of anger that caused his face to flush. _We've got too much to do to worry about them._

"I… I'm done with you." Ace said, face solemn as he finally got a handle on his anger. "Tonight has been far, far too long to deal with you rabble."

Ace began to walk away, leaving the pair to look at his back.

"But… I will kill you both the next time I see you." Ace said without turning back around.

" _If_ you see us again. With so much royalty in one area," Itori snarked, "It may be hard to survive. Unless you join us."

Ace stop and turned his head to look into Itori's eyes. Then he brought a hand up and gave her a single fingered salute, before continuing back towards the base.

* * *

Wearing a torn uniform and covered in blood, Ace walked back to the base. The soldiers manning the defensive line had shouted at him to give them the password, and apparently 'fuck you' was the correct one, because they'd let him past without another word. After hearing from Lieutenant Morbsy that Hinami was being taken to the infirmary, little good that it would do her since she was a Ghoul, Ace began to make his way deeper into the base. Halfway to the command center, an open topped jeep pulled up next to him, with Senior Agent Tomlinson in it.

"Get in. The decoy force was mangled pretty badly, and some of them are encircled. That bastard Arima showed up and cut about fifty men and your Ghoul friends."

Ace nodded and got in. The driver gunned the motor, and Ace began to get sideways glances from the soldier manning the pintle-mounted machine gun.

"We've got a relief force mobilizing up ahead. I want you to lead it."

"Why?" Ace asked, knowing that his tone bordered on insubordination, even though he left out the implied 'Why not lead it yourself'.

"The Doves are sneaking men in through the sewer system. I'm leading a team to stop them."

Ace just sat there in silence until the jeep braked hard by a group of loudly idling tanks.

"Get our folks out of there."

Finding the commander of the relief force wasn't hard, as it was Colonel Flynn, the man who'd called Senior Agent Tomlinson a monster. He and four other high ranking Army officers were looking at a small, ragged map showing the local streets.

"First Platoon can setup a blocking position here," Flynn pointed, "Everyone else guns for the main force of Doves and Japs."

Ace cleared his throat, still mostly cloaked in shadow.

"Whatdyou want, Ghoul?" Flynn said, apparently recognizing him. Ace stepped into the light from the tanks headlights, revealing his blood covered form and ragged and torn clothing.

"I want Arima, motherfucker."

Ten minutes went by before the first vehicle rolled forward. According to reports from the encircled men, they were holed up in a warehouse, surrounded by, according to them, several _hundred_ Doves. Ace stood atop the turret of Flynn's tank, tapping his foot impatiently. Flynn had been unwilling to provide Ace his own vehicle, especially when Ace had explained what he was planning.

Ken appeared beside him a moment later, climbing up onto the turret to stand beside him. Another figure appeared on the other side, and Ace's lip twitched when he saw Eto climbing aboard.

"What are you doing?" He asked sharply, kakugan appearing. It took him a moment of confusion to recognize that he'd spoken in English. Repeating his question in Japanese, Eto smiled slyly.

"I'm not going to leave my own self-preservation up to that stupid barely-a-Ghoul that you left in charge of me. And anyways, if Arima is involved, I need to be involved."

Ace didn't feel like arguing, so he shrugged and looked at Ken.

"Do you think the three of us can face him?"

"Not really. But we might as well try."

Flynn's helmeted head appeared out of the tanks command cupola, he took a long look at both of the newly arrived One-Eyed Ghouls and then turned forward to man the machine gun. A dozen helicopters and several jump jets hovered nearby, the sound of their engines redoubling when Flynn made a lassoing motion with his hands and spoke his command into the helmet mic. The tank accelerated underneath him, its engine making a high pitched whine as it moved the heavy vehicle forward. The sound of twelve of them accelerating was deafening. They skidded around the corner, and the pitch black street immediately lit up with gunfire, tracers crisscrossing back and forth.

"Well, I'm not waiting here." Eto said, and leapt from the turret, running forward at great speed. Ken and Ace followed her, ducking and diving through the storm of bullets and rockets. A line of Doves, lower ranking ones armed with submachine guns backed up by Japanese army tanks and soldiers, materialized as they grew nearer, leaping from building to building. The three Ghouls bounded over the line of soldiers, kagune reaping a horrible harvest, moments before the American tanks thundered down upon them, their main guns having already destroyed their Japanese foes.

Ahead, near the warehouse, a battle was already raging, with the defending American's and Ghouls being under merciless attack. Two figures were at the main doors, fighting a lone man with snow-white hair. And losing, badly.

A massive Quinque bolt, glowing orange, planted itself in Ace's chest and exploded, and other Quinque weapons brought Eto and Ken down. The three dropped into the street, their bodies healing with the extraordinary quickness of kakuja.

Eto was the first to activate her kakuja, as dozens of Quinque armed Doves appeared, but Ace and Ken quickly followed.

"Oh, my god."

Marude had moved his command post further forward, and was only a few hundred meters away from the three Ghouls that had just appeared.

"Marude, what's happening?" Yoshitoki Washuu asked through his small wireless earbud, sitting miles away in the main command post trying to salvage what he could from the situation in and around Cochlea. "Report!"

"The Hellhound, the One-Eyed Owl and the Centipede have appeared." Marude replied quietly, before pulling the earbud out and grabbing his own Quinque case. Aura stood nearby, still heavily wounded but carrying her own attaché case. "What do you think…?"

"I'm going to provide covering fire, don't argue." She said, cutting him off. "I have business with the three of them anyways."

He shrugged in response. Pulling the mic in front of him around, he gave his final order.

"All Associate and Special class Investigators will engage the Owl, Hellhound and Centipede. All other units fall back on Special Class Arima."

Heading out into the strangely humid night, he felt himself starting to perspire even before he naturally should have.

 _This is insane._ Three _SSS+ Ghouls in one place, and cooperating? Why, why why?!_

Marude pulled his Quinque from its box, revealing the long, saber-like form of the Nobora 1/1. Seeing a horrifyingly familiar shape leaping overhead, he flicked his wrist upwards, and the saber split into a wide shield, deflecting the barrage of shards from the One-Eyed Owl as it leapt overhead. Of the dozens Investigators he had been standing among, only he, Aura, and two others had made it through. The others had become human pincushions, many still moaning.

Centipede and Hellhound weren't moving with the speed that the Owl did, but they were killing just as many good Investigators. A Russian colleague of Marude, Vlad Dubovsky, was batted aside by one of Centipedes eponymous tails, and skidded to a halt near Marude.

"Marude, what in the hell should we do?" He said in fluent Japanese. "These bastards are-"

A massive set of jaws sank themselves around Vlad's entire torso, tearing away with a sound that made Marude want to vomit. The other man took two steps, and then lifeless corpse folded over itself. Something hit Marude hard in the chest, and he looked into the face of Associate Special Class Haise Sasaki. He drove his fist into Marude's stomach, sending him flying several feet backwards.

Coughing up some blood, he watched in horror as Aura and the two still living Investigators attacked Sasaki and were handily defeated. Taking his chance, Marude buried his Quinque in Sasaki's chest up to the hilt. The Ghoul didn't even flinch, and Marude felt something slide into his pocket and deposit something.

" _Important Information_." Haise whispered, before his kagune pierced Marude through the side of his chest.

Ace killed another Dove with a slash, finally breaking through the horde to where Arima was fighting Eto. They moved like lightning, coming together momentarily in streaks of sparks. Touka and Irimi were lying on the ground near the entrance of the warehouse, with Renji standing over them fighting a trio of Doves. Ace moved to join him.

His rinkaku slid through ones chest, before the two meter long koukaku lance on his right arm decapitated the other. Renji, taking advantage of the third Dove's momentary distraction, pulled the man's head off with his bare hands.

" _Get inside."_ Ace growled to Renji through his kakuja, turning towards the fight between Arima and Eto. Suddenly, Ken joined the battle, seeming to catch Arima off guard momentarily. The older man seemed to stumble as Ken kicked him in the side, but recovered with unnerving quickness and slice Ken's legs off at the knee.

Ace joined the fray, dozens of rinkaku joining the wolf's head in his attack, even as he leapt forward, lance aiming directly for Arima's heart. Fear took hold when Arima caught the kakuja driven lance thrust with his right hand. It drove him back several feet, but he simply leaned into the strike and took it. A massive amount of heat was produce, and Ace watched as the right sleeve of Arima's tunic seemed to burn away, revealing a silver armor that covered him from the tip of his fingers to his shoulder. Tendrils ran across his chest as far as Ace could see, and down towards his waist as well.

 _That's… That's…_ Ace felt his throat constrict. He thought of what Itori had said about Arima returning from testing out a new weapon. _Dad._

The battle seemed to pause for a moment, as hundreds of eyes widened in awe and surprise.

"This looks familiar, doesn't it, Hellhound?" Arima said quietly, holding the offending arm up when Ace stepped back. "This is what you get for kill so many of those I cared about."

 _Kill_. _Rip. DESTROY!_

He felt his mind shatter in that moment, as any hope of seeing his Father again were destroyed. The Hellhound personality returned, but it was part of him now, fueling his anger.

" _MOTHERFUCKER!"_

Arima batted his next strike away, before using a blast from his IXA Quinque to destroy all of Ace's rinkaku. Eto attacked from the other direction, but Arima, with a smooth movement flipped IXA's grip around and fired through his armpit. Taking it full in the chest of her kakuja, he watched as Eto's massive form seemed to shrivel into nothingness, and her body appeared from within, a massive hole in her chest. She looked vaguely surprised, but still wore a slight smile.

The surrounding Investigators pulled back as Arima's blast had caught a dozen of them in the backblast, and the attacking American's took advantage of this as they slammed into them with the dozens tanks and other vehicles leading a charge of infantry. It was pure chaos.

Another pair of arms appeared from Ace's kakuja, and his eyes began to glow ominously. Arima aimed IXA at him, firing another blast. All four of his arms formed shields, holding them together to protect his body. Crackling bolts of lightning arced all around him, burning into the asphalt and lighting the warehouse behind them on fire. Shields disappearing, and returning to their clawed form, Ace leapt to attack, finding Arima had already made his own attack. Another Quinque had materialized in his hand, and a massive Quinque appeared in his hand, slicing towards Ace.

A few moments passed, and Ace found himself lying without limbs, his kakuja destroyed. His lips were dry, and his wounds refused to heal. Arima had a large set of wounds on his chest that had destroyed the rest of his tunic, revealing that Dad's Quinque covered his arms and legs as well. The one over his right arm was cracked, and the left had several large dents in it, courtesy of Ace. But it had all been for naught. He had still lost. And now his Father would go unavenged.

"You know, Hellhound," Arima said quietly, "I wish I had time to spend finishing you off. But, the true challenger has finally arrived."

"Arima." Ken Kaneki, healed of his wounds, said, stepping in between Ace and Arima. "I will claim my crown, now."

"I thought you would." Arima replied, "There can be only one One-Eyed King. Eto explained that, correct?"

Ace watched in confusion as Ken nodded.

"To the death, then?" The older Dove asked, before moving with inhuman speed to attack. The world began to fade as Ken moved just as quickly, his kagune striking like lightning. Just as with Eto and Arima, the battle with Ken and Arima generated massive showers of sparks. It was simply amazing how fast the two of them moved, how quickly they parried and countered.

It ended as quickly as it started, though the two minutes of battle had seemed like an eternity to Ace. Arima impaled Ken with his right arm, while Ken had sliced open the Dove's chest. Another pause took hold over the battlefield, as the Doves watched their strongest collapse to the ground.

The world spun suddenly, and Ace felt a nausea he'd never felt before as the darkness finally took him.

* * *

"…will help you when you call for them. Did you give Marude the information from Eto?"

Ken nodded as his mentor lay on the ground, looking up at him with a single eye, the other clouded and unseeing.

"The Hellhound is the single largest thorn in our sides, the wildcard," Arima said, almost whispering, "He shall either be your greatest enemy or your greatest ally."

"Eto thought the latter." Ken said, going to his knees beside Arima. During the battle, his hair had gone completely white again as he struggled mentally with what was going on, and so when he looked at Arima, he saw so much of himself, so much of what he had become.

 _Part of me hates you. And part of me loves you as a father._

"And I think the former. Do what you will, but beware of the other Kings…"

The Reaper of the CCG relaxed suddenly, finally giving in to the massive wounds across his body.


	22. Chapter 22

"Ace. Wake up."

Ace's eyes slowly opened. Pain caused his body to shudder, as he regained consciousness, but the pain faded after a few moments. The world around him seemed to be painted in bright oranges and reds, and his face felt incredibly warm.

 _Fire?_ He thought groggily. A face appeared in his field of vision, Ken Kaneki looking down at him. Ken offered a hand, and Ace took it, standing unsteadily on newly healed legs.

"My… My father…" Ace moaned, tears beginning to sting his eyes. Despair and sorrow took root in his heart, but placed a well-aimed slap across Ace's right cheek. It took a moment, but Ace recovered some semblance of mental order. "Is… Arima dead?"

"Yes."

"Good." He said, looking past Ken at the other :Re Ghouls. Touka, Irimi and Yomo looked pretty haggard, while Nishiki and Ayato seemed pretty fresh. "Where's Eto?"

They found her lying against a burned out tank, most of her chest missing. Blood ran from her eyes like tears, and most of her limbs were missing. She looked close to death. When Ace and Ken approached, she looked viciously at the other Ghouls.

"Only you two."

When the others had retreated a little ways towards the burning warehouse, Eto looked at them.

"I'm going to die, my friend Arima truly did a number on me."

"If he's your friend than why-"

Eto shooshed Ace, and then went into a sparse explanation of her life, and how she and Arima had met on the battlefield years ago, and the pact that he been forged on that bloodstained concrete. They created an image, and then crafted a person to fit it. All Ace knew of Kaneki seemed to click together.

"And your father, Ace. His capture and… death were not intended in all this. I had hoped that he, and your country, would become an ally of the One-Eyed King. Against the CCG, and against the other groups who are vying for control of the world."

"You were the one who called my father here?" Ace asked quietly.

"Yes. And we got so, so much more." She said, letting out a husky laugh. "But only because of the Agent that betrayed your father. To the Clowns."

"Who?"

"Her name is Veronica Lang."

Ace let out a noise of disbelief. Veronica Lang was the Head Secretary of the West Coast office of the FBGA, the _de factor_ head of the West Coast branch of the FBGI. Ace had never seen or met her before, as he had primarily been East Coast, but had heard quite a bit about her.

"It's true…" Her voice began to fade slightly, "She and… A particular Clown have a familial relationship. You'll know when you see her."

She slumped even further down, eyes seeming to lose focus.

"Break the birdcage… Don't let them win…"

And then she was gone, eyes unmoving.

"We can't let the CCG have her body. They'll make her into a Quinque that I don't want to deal with in the future," Ken said, using his rinkaku to slice her body apart with a flick.

Ace was disgusted by himself for partaking, and Ken's nonchalance at eating someone who had ostensibly been an ally, but he ate her flesh and crunched her bones nonetheless. The others watched in horror, but did nothing to intervene. When Ace and Ken finally stood, the feeling in the air had changed. Where there had been despair before, now there was a faint whisper of hope tinged with sorrow.

"Ace, I'm going to build something new," Ken said as they stood side-by-side for a moment, "Something the world has never seen. You don't have to answer now, but one day, you'll have to choose. Help me, or get out of my way."

* * *

"If you continue to bombard the Yokosuka Naval Base, we will fire every cruise missile our ships carry. We've already picked out several dozen targets."

After Senior Agent Tomlinson had failed to return from his mission into the sewer, General Brigsby had put all of Tomlinson's responsibilities on him. Those responsibilities included, apparently, being the General's envoy to the Japanese Army.

So that was why Ace, dressed in a fresh uniform, stood out in the open street, a hundred meters from the nearest defensive line. Beside him was Ken, wearing a pair of dress pants and a tucked in white dress shirt with the collar unbuttoned. The squad of soldiers opposite them, and the two high ranking Doves with them, were obviously nervous. Sweat ran down their foreheads and stained their own uniforms. In the distance, the sound of artillery rumbled, punctuated by the much louder _crack_ s of American counterstrikes.

"We are under orders to exterminate the Hellhound and Centipede!" One of them, the junior of the two, said suddenly, finally finding the brave, foolish words. The senior Investigator looked sideways at him, eyes going wide in fear as he turned to look at the two of them.

Neither Ghoul moved, but three eyes darkened into kakugan.

"And here we are," Ken said, "Why don't you exterminate us?"

The two Doves and their squad dove to the ground, covering their ears.

" _Now!"_

Ace and Ken tumbled to the ground, three holes in the center of each of their foreheads. The squad of soldiers flinched as the snipers hidden in the buildings to either side continued to fire, filling the two bodies them with holes. The pair of Investigators drew their Quinque and charged, their quickly laid trap sprung. One raised his spear-like Quinque over his head, aiming for the Hellhounds heart. The tip never got within six inches, before it stopped suddenly. The Junior dove let out a cry and dropped the weapon, as the Hellhound stood, a rinkaku tentacle wrapped around the weapon. The Senior squealed in horror as Ken Kaneki stood again, and ripped his throat out with his bare hands.

"Fire the first missile." Ace said quietly into the mic taped to his throat. "Target B."

Out in the bay, a hatch flipped open on the USS _Wilbur_ , and a Tomahawk cruise missile shot out on a pillar of smoke and flames, climbing several hundred feet into the air. Then it turned over on its side and a pair of wings popped out of its fuselage. The missile only traveled ten miles, before slamming into one of the CCG's Ward offices.

"That was the Third Ward's Office," Ace said, looking down at the Junior Dove, _tsk_ ing as the man pissed himself, "If the artillery doesn't stop within a half hour, every Ward Office, the Emperor's Palace and anything else I can think of will be destroyed."

"Y-y-y-you're a monster!" The Junior yelled, tears running down his face, "Comeon, guys, kill them!"

His call-to-arms fell on deaf ears, and he risked a look back over his shoulder. The squad of soldiers lay in pieces on the ground, and there were several headless bodies lining the street. The Dove's eyes bugged out as he saw several figures racing with inhuman speed across rooftops.

"Twenty-nine minutes and fifty seconds." Ace said, looking at his watch. "Forty-eight…Forty-five."

The Dove turned and fled back to the distant Jap positions. Ace looked down in disgust at the blood soaking his uniform.

 _Bastards._ He thought, as Touka and Ayato dropped from their rooftop positions.

"Do you think they'll do it? Stop the bombardment?" Touka asked as she came up and touched Ken's face.

"If they don't, I'm going to blow up the Emperor's Palace. Then a university, then a hospital." Touka and Ken snapped a look at Ace as he coldly delivered the last two targets. Ace stared back, resolute. "I've got a couple thousand lives that I have to preserve for twelve more hours."

The others looked disgusted, but Ace ignored them and turned on his heel, heading back towards the American lines. Somewhere in the distance, a pair of machine guns traded fire, popping off back and forth at each other. The last twenty four hours after the death of Arima and the cream of the CCG's Investigators had been relatively peaceful, with the bombardment only having picked up in the last hour and a half.

A jet ripped overhead, followed by another one, and a sound like a great belch overwhelmed even the sound of their low altitude attack. One of the jets came apart, and after another great belch the second one came apart. Neither had had time to fire any kind of weapon in retaliation.

 _Good, one of the ships got them._

The Marines who guarded the defensive line nearest them let them through without a word, watching with great fear. Arima had cut a swath through several platoons before turning his attention upon the Ghouls, and nothing the Marines had had been able to come anywhere near scratching him. But the two young men who walked through their ranks had fought the man toe to toe and survived. Not only survived, but killed the Death Reaper of the CCG.

The bombardment had stopped by the time Ace walked through the doors to the barracks. The base was bustling with activity, as they prepared to evacuate what amounted to a large town, and even Hinami and the others were busily preparing to evacuate.

"You'll be boarding _Iwo Jima_ in a few hours," He told the others, when they looked up, "Ken and I will remain behind to-"

"I'm not leaving Ken's side." Touka said definitively.

"Fine, Ken, Touka and I… What?" He cut off as Irimi and Renji cleared their throats. Shuu, Hinami and the others also gave him resolute looks. "Honestly? This isn't the time to be turning down an escape route! The CCG is going to attack with everything they've got tonight, and I can't afford to risk you!"

Ace looked directly at Hinami. Her face reddened and she broke eye contact with him.

"Fine!" Ace threw his hands up in the air when they continued to be stubborn. "You'll evacuate by chopper with me."

* * *

The attack came suddenly out of the setting sun. A veritable fleet of Japanese aircraft swept in, and the ships in the harbor and the Harriers went to work, knocking them down. Night had fallen, and so only the bright lances of missiles and lines of tracers exchanging back and forth lit up the base. Nearly half of those who were to be evacuated had been packed like sardines aboard the _Iwo Jima_ , leaving the soldiers and a few thousand civilians. But contact with the fleet had been established, and they would be here soon. They had to fight through a combined fleet of Chinese and Russian ships, bolstered by a few Japanese Navy vessels.

But their radio signal had likely been intercepted, and so the CCG was doing its best to make sure the fleet had nothing to rescue.

A column of Japanese armored vehicles smashed through the first defensive line they had set up, having cleared the debris from the buildings Ace and the others had dropped. Hundreds of infantry poured through the gap, even as American artillery blasted them from short range. Ace, Ken and the others lurked overhead on the rooftops, waiting for their opportunity. Behind the main armored fist, dozens of Doves charged with the infantry.

This was the main attack. The Japanese _coup de grace_ for the American invaders. And Ace was going to stop it.

Dropping from the rooftop by himself, Ace landed atop the turret of a tank. The tanks commander looked up in horror, his hand flinching towards machine gun in front of him, but Ace kicked his face in. Pulling a grenade from his combat webbing, he dropped it down the hatch behind the dead commander, and ripped the machine gun from its mount with his bare hands. A Dove leapt up onto the turret roof with him, but Ace put a burst from the machine gun through his chest before leaping away. Driving his hand through a nearby soldiers face, he used the man's corpse as a shield from the flurry of bullets that were coming his way now. Ace fired back with the machine gun, running through a hundred rounds in only a few seconds, and leaving the barrel red hot and drooping.

 _Damn._ Ace thought as another Dove, this one obviously higher ranking by the pair of powerful looking Quinque she was yielding, flew in at him from above. Dozens, _hundreds_ of Doves were jumping from second story windows, surrounding Ace. Above, he could hear the others engaged in a fight. _They're coming from above and below._

Ace parried her attack with a hastily created kagune lance and shield, sending her tumbling even as he dropped the red-hot machine gun. She quickly recovered, spinning in place and slashing at him with a suddenly prehensile Bikaku Quinque. Ace avoided it, but her other Quinque came up, an ukaku, and fired directly into his chest. The shards bit into him, some going completely through and some lodging, but Ace didn't hesitate. His own kagune looped around and struck, leaving a bloody gash on the female Doves side.

Another Dove, wearing a uniform that exactly matched the female Dove facing Ace, drove a koukaku blade into his chest from behind. He darted away before Ace could attack, and parried away his counterattack. The female Dove reappeared, her bikaku slicing Ace's right arm nearly off.

"You're not so tough, Hellhound," The woman said, smiling, "Arima must have been tired."

She grunted in shock as the still glowing barrel of the machine gun appeared in her stomach. Ace had picked up the entire weapon, throwing it at her with enough force to go completely through her. Steam burst from the wound, and she collapsed to the ground.

"You know, you Doves sure do love to talk trash before your die." Ace said, jumping out of the way of the female Dove's partner. Reaching out, his kakuja claws covered his arms, and he ripped the man's face off, sending him to the ground howling with pain.

Something flashed by overhead, shrieking louder than any human voice could. Ace caught a glimpse of it, seeing the unfamiliar missile bank to the side, heading towards the harbor.

 _A single missile?_ Ace stood still for a moment, slack jawed. The missile was obviously Russian, but… _Those only contain nukes and…_

Ace threw himself to the ground as the night became day. The missile had luckily not been carrying a nuclear warhead, but the fuel-air explosives it did carry were nearly as bad. The explosion sent a shudder through the ground, and shattered every window within several miles. But Ace was on his feet before the final vibrations, climbing upwards. The others were much worse for wear, having been nearly swept off the rooftops, but their Dove opponents hadn't fared as well.

"Oh shit." Ace said aloud when he saw what the missiles target had been. The _Iwo Jima_ less than a mile offshore, with a few thousand civilians, was a smoldering wreck rapidly settling into the ocean. Two of its escorts were damaged, but the troop ship had been the clear target.

 _So many innocent lives lost…_ Ace said, his boiling anger suddenly growing cold, before turning the radio on his hip on.

"Goalpost, this is Hound," Goalpost was the call sign for the ship out in the harbor that Ace had been in contact with, "How's the situation?"

"Not good, what do you need, Hound?" The exasperated voice said from the other end.

"Execute Fire Plan Alpha."

"Roger."

Looking out to the harbor, the remaining ships seemed to explode, as their VLS launchers popped open and sent a torrent of missiles skyward, each of them targeted against a high-value target, not all of which were related to the military, as Ace had promised earlier.

* * *

Tokyo smoldered, hours after the final missile had destroyed the Imperial Palace. The entire city seemed to be on fire, and a pillar of smoke blocked the rising sun. The sound of the Osprey VTOLs ferrying the civilians out to the transports was joined by the massive hovercraft doing the same, their combined noise a constant buzzing that covered up the sound of a smoldering Tokyo.

Ace stood in the center of a pile of bodies stacked several deep, his uniform torn and covered in blood. Ken and the others stood nearby, atop their own piles of corpses. All of them seemed dazed and exhausted, and even as Ace watched, Irimi collapsed. Seeing an opportunity, the trio of Doves facing her leapt forth, Quinque stabbing towards her, but Renji killed them with a vicious, but clearly weakened, fusillade of ukaku shards.

The Doves were just as exhausted as their American and Ghoul allies, and their attacks had grown steadily weaker. Only when the aircraft had begun to appear did they attempt to move forward, with the Army in support, but the remaining American artillery had annihilated every advancing column of armor and soldiers before they got within half a mile. The Doves that came up out of the underground, however, were a different story.

 _They_ required a bit of hand to hand work.

"Fall back to the next defense line!" Ace yelled before bounding backwards towards the set of sandbagged bunkers manned by the final few hundred US Marines and SAS alive. Leaping over it, with Doves on their heels, Ace turned as the shrieking of artillery nearly deafened him. The ground shook and rumbled as the Doves behind them were turned into chunks.

"Ace, I don't know how much more I can do this." Hinami said when she approached him. Her eyes were blank, eyes staring into the distance. "This is…"

"This is war, Hina." Ace responded, slightly more brusquely then he had intended. Seeing Hinami's eyes sharpen defensively, his voice softened. "Love… Just a little longer, and we can leave here…"

He touched her arm for a moment, as another figure appeared beside him. A man wearing the rank tabs of a Captain. Ace had never bothered learning his name, even though this man was technically the commanding officer of the defense of the base now, seeing as all of the other senior officers had been caught in an unlucky artillery hit on the command center.

"We're pulling out in thirty… Sir."

Ace nodded in response, then dropped his hand as he noticed that Hinami had moved on back towards the others.

"Rally the men." Ace growled, having long before lost his voice, "Fall back over the next fifteen minutes towards the FDL," The Final Defense Line was only a few hundred meters from the beach where the hovercraft were busily moving civilians, and it was luckily under the cover of the naval cannons near the coast. "Trash everything you leave behind."

Stumbling towards a small nearby weapons cache, Ace pulled a heavy MK 19 automatic grenade launcher from its mount, clumsily loading it with a combination of ammo and draping a pair of reserve ammo cases across his back. Then, hearing the sound of gunfire to the west, Ace lifted the launcher with his kagune and swept towards the carnage.

He was just about to leap over a barricade and join the fight when the sky cracked overhead, and the world dissolved into fire.


	23. Chapter 23

Ace tumbled through the air, slamming with bone crushing force back into the barricade he'd leapt over only a moment before. Bones throughout his body were smashed into dust, even as he felt an uncomfortable heat spread across his body. Above him, a mushroom cloud was beginning to form.

 _Someone just hit the center of Tokyo with a nuke_.

It was apparently a small one, but it had fallen right in the center of downtown. Where nearly a million people lived.

Body healing almost immediately, Ace thudded toward where he had last heard the gunfire, but stopped in his tracks as he saw several men shambling toward him, clawing at eyes that had been blinded by the flash.

"Comeon… just, follow the sound of my voice." Ace said quietly, grabbing the nearest man. "Comeon!"

The CCG had apparently thought better of their last moment attack, especially when dozens of American aircraft streamed overhead, careful to avoid the rising mushroom cloud.

"I promise I didn't do it," Ace said when he again saw Hinami, Ken and Touka, who were waiting with the final few squads of Marines to load aboard a behemoth hovercraft. "I don't even know where I'd get my hands on a nuke."

"Then who did it?" Touka asked. She stood protectively next to Ken, "Not many people have nukes…"

Ace shrugged, turning as an Osprey landed nearby.

"Time to go!" The Captain yelled. "We can only take two more on the Osprey. Everyone else has to take the last hovercraft."

Just about to say that he and Hinami could take the Osprey, Ace whirled at the sound of more gunfire. A wave of Japanese army troops and Doves were streaming towards them, shouts and looks of rage carrying towards them.

Calmly, Ace began to walk grenades into the oncoming horde of men. Hearing other soldiers firing, Ace turned to look at them, glaring.

" _Go!_ "

Something whipped by him as the hovercraft began to back off of the beach, slamming into Touka's back and sending her sprawling to the ground. Ace turned at her grunt of pain, making eye contact with Ken, who was about to jump off of the rapidly retreating hovercraft to rescue her.

Ace just waved him off and picked up Touka with his rinkaku, dragging her backwards across the sand towards the waiting Osprey.

"Comeon!" The rear gunner of the Osprey called, stepping out from behind his weapon to help Ace drag the unconscious and badly wounded Ghoul into the cargo bay. Turning, Ace unloaded the final few rounds from the grenade launcher as the rear gunner's minigun spun up, roaring out a stream of rounds.

Reloading the grenade launcher, Ace joined him as the Osprey jumped into the sky, seeming to move sluggishly. Dropping his weapon as the final grenade lashed out, Ace dropped onto the Osprey's deck, breathing heavily. Then his eyes caught sight of something out of the bay door, slashing in towards the hovercraft on a tail of fire.

The missile struck the hovercraft nearly dead center, and Ace could only watch in horror as the entire craft disintegrated.

" _No!_ " Ace screamed lunging towards the open doors. One of the soldiers, the Captain who had spoken to him earlier, grabbed him just as he was about to leap from the craft.

"Nothing you can do, Sir!" He said when Ace whirled towards him angrily. "They're gone. And we've got our own problems…"

The Osprey suddenly turned up on its side and dropped through the air, a missile, smaller than the one that had destroyed the hovercraft carrying Ken and the others, flashed by. Behind them, a trail of flares exploded behind the Osprey, and Ace was nearly thrown from the aircraft when it suddenly heeled upwards, the noise of its engines seeming to strain. The Captain nearly tumbled out of the bay door, but Ace caught him, but no one had ever bothered to strap Touka down.

Her still inert form slid down the smooth metal of the Osprey's decking, too far away for anyone to catch her. But just as she slid completely out of the door, numerous rinkaku exploded from Ace's back, wrapping around her waist and also around several of the handholds in the bay. Laboring to pull Touka back up with his rinkaku, the bay doors came shut just as he pulled her through.

"Thanks…" The Captain murmured, his eyes wide as Ace stood there. Ace put both of the others down and quickly strapped Touka into a seat, the sound of the Osprey's rotors seeming to drown out his thoughts.

An hour later, the Osprey was landing onboard the aircraft carrier _George Washington_ , having had to circle the big aircraft carrier for nearly half an hour while other aircraft landed. Touka came awake with a start, the wound through her neck having healed cleanly.

"Ace, what happened?"

Ace hung his head in response.

* * *

"It is the judgement of the panel that Senior Agent Lincoln acted in accordance with all Agency policies, and showed a tenacity and dedication that brought honor to the organization…"

Ace sat back in the uncomfortable wooden chair, blocking out the droning Agency spokesperson who stood at the podium. He'd heard this same song and dance nearly a dozen times in the half a year since his escape from Japan.

Absentmindedly he began to flick his pen around in circles, a habit that served to annoy his Agency provided counsel, who gave him a sharp look of reproach. Ace ignored her, continuing to swing the pen.

 _The world has gone crazy, and I'm sitting here. Listening to them tell me that I did the right thing, over and over again._

Another hour passed before he was escorted out of the U.S. Capitol Building by dozens of armed Agents and several police officers. As the face of this war, which had grown steadily worse since the Battle of Tokyo, as the battle which Ace had fought in had become known as, he was under constant threat.

 _And the fact that I mislead the Agency about some of the facts of my time in Tokyo, such as how powerful I have become._

But he knew that he was being tracked at all times, and not just by the Agency. Less than a week before, during his last visit to the Capitol building, an unknown assailant had sniped him as he exited, killing three civilians in addition to an unlucky non-Ghoul agent. Ace had acted injured, having to be carried to the armored car that was waiting for him, but as soon as he was inside, his wounds instantly healed, much to the chagrin of his security detail.

And, Ace had even gotten threats from the local Japanese nationals, many of whom saw him as directly responsible for the destruction of Japan as a human nation. Even though it had been explained many times that that distinction was laid at the feet of the CCG, which had withdrawn to China and Russia after the Battle of Tokyo, leaving the human population of Japan completely unprotected from the massacre that had followed.

According to conservative estimates, 25 million Japanese had already died, as the hundreds of thousands of Ghoul's who had lived among them in secret began to prey upon them openly. Already the country had been split up by numerous self-proclaimed Ghoul warlords and kings, with only small pockets of non-Ghouls being able to hold on against the ravenous hordes.

People were already labeling it World War III, as nations were being forced to choose sides in the conflict. All of North America was firmly on the United States side, plus France, England and a handful of other nations, including, surprisingly, South Korea. The small peninsular country had been a special case in the world, harboring both a major American presence, and a major Dove presence. But the CCG had made a mistake in assuming that the South Koreans would side with them, and had been caught killing civilians during the furious fighting between Dove and American forces.

But the rest of the world was firmly under the CCG's, and V's by extension, thumb. And even now they were feeling the push. Russian and German tank battalions had rolled into France like an iron hammer, only being stopped after having pushed a dozen miles across the border. Even then, it had taken several British divisions being deployed to support their allies and a concentrated bombardment with fuel-air explosives to halt them.

And with Ghouls rising up throughout the CCG occupied areas, it was likely…

"Where to, Agent Lincoln?" His driver, a bulky Ghoul called Stephen, said when he climbed inside, snapping him out of his thoughts, "Home?"

"Please, Stephen."

The car ahead of them, with four heavily armed bodyguards, pulled out ahead of them, with Stephen following closely. A black SUV with six more guards followed them.

"So are you and that Japanese Ghoul seeing each other?" Stephen said, doing his best at idle conversation.

"No. She was part of the resistance group I worked with in Tokyo," Ace said idly, though he felt a pang of hurt in his heart. "She was close with the One-Eyed King."

Stephen looked at him in the rear-view. News of the One-Eyed King, and copies of Eto's final book, had spread like wildfire through the Ghoul world.

"Wow, she knew _him_?"

Ace nodded.

"I knew him as well."

"Well, that's a given. Most of the Agency has read the public section of your report. You helped him during the Battle of Tokyo."

 _Ah. So that's how they all seem to know. Luckily I withheld the fact that Ken and the other are dead in my report._

Stephen fell silent as traffic suddenly came to a stop ahead of them, leaving them stuck in the middle of the road, with cars close by on either side. He spoke into his throat mic, and seemed to receive a terse reply.

"Trouble, Senior Agent." He said over his shoulder. "Fire and Rescue is blocking the street up ahead and…"

Ace watched as a fireman approached their lead escort, fully kitted out with rebreather mask and tank. When the lead escort dropped their window to speak to him, the firefighter produced a small submachine gun and sprayed the interior of the sedan, before turning to empty the rest of the magazine into the windshield of Ace's car. The rounds cracked the armored windshield, but the glass did its job and they were kept out of the passenger compartment.

"Code Red, Code Red." Stephen said into his throat mic, as more men dressed as public workers, firefighters, police officers and the like, appeared around them pouring fire into their vehicle. A rocket flared from a building to their left and destroyed the support vehicle behind them, sending the SUV over onto its side as it burst into flames. All four of the occupants of the vehicle crawled out from inside, their clothing alight, but ostensibly they were okay, being Ghouls. The four of them counterattacked towards the attackers, charging past Ace's window with a vengeance. "Security team is engaging!"

Several of the attackers though, deployed their own kagune, revealing themselves to be Ghouls as well. The four highly experienced Agents didn't falter, though, and began to battle them.

His viewpoint was obscured as Stephen pulled through a small gap that had opened up as people attempted to reverse away, and onto a one-way side street, driving along the sidewalks whenever cars blocked the way.

 _This has got to be V trying to take care of me…_ Ace sat back in the seat, unworried.

"Shit!" Stephen cried out as an ambulance pulled out in front of them, its back doors torn away. Inside were a pair of Ghouls with RPGs. Swerving hard onto another side street, the rockets just missed, and instead destroyed a pair of parked cars. But the toll on the armored car was beginning to take effect, as it seemed to want to keep sliding to one side.

Ace flipped a small clip open on the sedans center console and pulled his own submachine gun from inside, plus four clips of ammo, a radio headset and a pair of smoke grenades. Stephen noticed but kept his mouth shut.

"We're heading for the interstate, Control. Get us some support!" The headphone blared in Stephen's voice.

"Roger, QRF is on its way. Five mikes out." A familiar voice said.

"I don't think we're gonna last that long." Ace said, as the driver gunned the vehicles motor. "Not in this vehicle. Find us a parking garage."

The other Ghoul looked at him as if he were crazy. When Ace inclined his head, letting his kakugan appear, Stephen relented.

"VIP is advising us to find a parking garage. Reroute QRF to… the garage on 4th street."

"Roger."

Their vehicle screamed into the parking garage with a dozen other vehicles following behind, men leaning out of windows trying to get a bead on them with RPGs and rifles.

"All the way to the top!" Ace yelled as the rear window finally gave way and a round made its way through the window. An RPG struck a concrete column to their right, buffeting the sedan, but providing a welcome, but temporary, smokescreen.

As they swerved around the final level, Ace asked Stephen, "What kind of Ghoul are you?"

* * *

"Stupid Americans, they're trapped now."

Hans Freundstein smiled from beneath the firefighters helmet he wore. The driver of the ambulance he rode in, as well as the two men in the bay behind him, had no idea of his true identity, and likely never would, even if they completed their mission.

 _I wonder if they even suspect that their employers will have them killed as soon as they return to the safehouse_?

The heavily damaged car in front of them made the final turn to head to the roof of the parking garage, disappearing for a moment from view. When it reappeared, it was accelerating at a mad rate up the roof ramp, sending sparks everywhere as it bottomed out as it landed heavily. Apparently one of their rounds had found the driver, become the car seemed to swerved only at the last moment, slamming into the guardrails sideways, seeming to immediately fill with smoke as flames erupted from the engine.

" _Los!_ Drag the Butcher of Tokyo from the vehicle and let's go!" The transport helicopter circling inconspicuously overheard dropped suddenly, flaring out at the last moment as its landing gear extended.

Hans joined his men in continuing to riddle the car with bullets, but signaled his two RPG wielding men to stand down. They'd need those to escape…

Something landed beside his foot, and he looked down in confusion, seeing the familiar white cylinder of a smoke grenade, just as it began to spill its contents. Another clattered to the ground a few feet away, and added its own smoke to the first's smoke, enveloping all thirty of Hans men in only a few seconds.

"Move! Get out of the smoke!" Hans yelled as someone began to fire a submachine gun from back near their vehicles, pounding diagonally away from the attacker. Clearing the smoke, he was forced to dodge as something swept through the smoke behind him. Stumbling to the ground, Hans watched as something that looked like a massive, red wolf's head on a snake's body swept through the smoke, tearing his men apart.

 _They never said anything about this! What is that thing?_ And then he saw, barely visible, a figure walking through the smoke its arms covered in some kind of silver armor. Vaulting back to his feet, Hans pulled two grenades from the combat webbing under his firefighting costume and threw them at the figure. Satisfied that they'd landed at the figures feet, he turned and leapt behind a parked car. Two thumps sounded behind him, and the sound of the cargo helicopter's whirring blades grew louder. The pilot was using his downdraft to push the concealing smoke away, and it was working. For a moment, Hans vision was clouded as the smoke rolled past him and off the roof of the parking garage. _This was supposed to be an easy snatch-and-grab!_

Standing in the center of the smoke, surrounded by the bodies of every single one of his men, stood the target. The Hellhound. He wasn't looking at Hans though, instead he was looking up at the helicopter, which was rapidly trying to gain altitude and get away.

A pair of blood red rinkaku appeared from behind the Hellhound's back, lunging upwards he fifty feet to the helicopters rotor hub, destroying it with ease.

Ace turned to look at the lone remaining attacker, his face set like stone, though his heart rejoiced at being able to fight. To kill his enemy. He felt bad having to knock Agent Stephen out, but he had to have a few moments alone with his attacker.

The remaining attacker made a move towards the edge of the parking garage, but Ace caught him in midair with the Wolf, its teeth sinking into the man's side. With a flick of its mouth, it threw the man to lie at Ace's feet.

Returning the Wolf to his body, Ace used his smaller rinkaku to cut the man's limbs off, and impale him atop several sensitive nerve clusters.

"Who sent you?" Ace asked conversationally. "Was it V? The Clowns? Are you one of those awful Quinx?"

The man jabbered at him, pain shooting across his eyes when Ace pushed his rinkaku even deeper.

"Tell me _now_. Or it only gets worse."

Ace watched his mouth working, and only at the last moment did he notice how strangely the man was contorting his jaw. Then he heard a crack and knew that he should have checked the man for suicide devices, and watched in annoyance as the man's head seemed to dissolve. Searching the attackers gear, he found only a small sheet of paper and a hotel keycard.

Quickly stashing the papers as he heard running feet from the parking garages ramp, he turned in place to face the Agents who were thundering towards him. Seeing him alone, and surrounded by bodies, they slowed to a halt, with several splitting off to check the half-eaten corpses. The lead one, a grizzled looking Agent, kept coming towards Ace.

"Are you alright, Senior Agent?"

"Mostly. Could use a new pair of pants." Ace said, gesturing to where the pair of grenades had mangled his pants up to the knee.

It was several hours before he finally returned home, having to be debrief by the Agency, who were kind enough to give him the next week off, to his childhood home on Mt. Airy, the Hill House.

Built in the late 18th Century, it had been the creation of one of Ace's great-great uncles, who had never wed and left the house to his only brother. Now, with the death of his father, it had passed down to Ace, bypassing his Mother completely. The nine-bedroom home was his to do with as he pleased.

And he only wished to burn the place to the ground. None of his memories of the place were very good, mainly being left alone. His few good memories were of the time he spent with his father, working in the garage, or throwing the ball out in the large field on the western end of the house.

Walking up to the white-columned façade, he was greeted by the sad form that had awaited him every time he left.

"Hello, Ace." Touka said sadly in Japanese. Ace winced at her tone, knowing that much of the fight had left her when she found out what had happened to the others. Her blue eyes had seemed dimmed, not full of the arrogance he sometime fondly remembered. "Long day?"

"As long as any of the others," He said, brushing past her. Heading to his room upstairs to take a shower.

When Ace had finished washing, he looked at himself in the mirror. His body had changed radically in the last year and a half. He had grown another few inches, now taller even than his father had been, and his body was taut with muscle. But when he looked at himself in the eye, he saw a different person.

 _I've done far too much to every be able to forget…_ He thought sadly, turning away from his own reflection and pulling on a comfortable pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

Heading downstairs, he found Touka as he usually did, curled up on the couch, the large flat screen TV featuring a pair of talking heads yelling at each other about whether or not the world was locked in a war.

 _Idiots._

Sitting down at the computer desk in the corner, Ace pulled a small device from the corner drawer, a simple RF scrambler, that would block any kind of signal within several hundred feet. He knew he was being watched, and didn't want anyone to be able to see this.

Pulling the hotel keycard from his pocket, as well as the slip of paper, he placed them on the table in front of him. Ace knew he'd lost any chance at getting fingerprints when he'd grabbed it, but that was of no consequence. Investigating the phone number written on it, as well as the hotel card with the room number written in slightly smudged sharpie, gave him some interesting leads.

 _Holiday Inn Express_ , _eh_? He thought sardonically. _Budget conscious terrorists?_

A quick search of a local phone book showed only one of those in an eighty-mile radius, and the number for that one did not match the number on the piece of paper. Upon calling the number, he heard a click, and then nothing.

He'd have to investigate this more thoroughly.


	24. Chapter 24

"Ace, where are you going?"

Touka was sitting up on the couch now, staring at him as he zipped up his leather jacket.

"I'm going for a ride; I need to clear my head." He grabbed his helmet, and was halfway to the door when Touka spoke up.

"Can I come with you?" Ace stopped in place, turning to look back at her. He'd made a habit of these late rides, but she'd never expressed any interest in them. When he saw how desolate she looked, he felt a pang of his own hurt, "Please?"

"Absolutely." Ace said, seeing a chance to cheer her up finally, "Just let me find you a set of leathers…"

Rummaging through the closet in the basement, he found a set of his sister's old riding leathers, and brought them up, along with a helmet that would fit. Waiting for her to get ready, Ace absentmindedly tapped his foot, watching the TV.

"…are putting up a terrific defense. The Germans and Russians really didn't know what hit them when the new Ghoul Battalion assaulted their command post. Ran right through them." That caught his attention for a moment, and he focused on the man talking, seeing an older gentlemen wearing a set of unfamiliar rank tabs.

"So, how do I look?" Touka asked when she reappeared, drawing his attention away from the TV. His first words caught in his mouth slightly. The riding leathers were a little small on Touka, and Ace was forced to look away. "Not good, eh?"

"It's fine." Ace said quickly, grabbing their helmets and tossing hers across the room to her. "Let's go."

Walking out into the cool air, they made their way to the unconnected garage, Ace opening the door with a press of his thumbprint. Inside were a dozen vehicles, but his eyes were only for one. His father had always bragged about racing motorcycles, and the lean, predatory looking crotch-rocket had always been his proof.

Now, it was something that let Ace get a bit of his aggression out on these late night rides.

Topping the tank up from the wall pump, he pulled his helmet on and climbed on, feeling awkward as Touka climbed onto the back, gripping his chest tightly. Turning the bike on, Ace pulled out onto the driveway, waiting to make sure the garage door closed completely. Then he pulled back the throttle and shot into the night.

* * *

"The First is on the move, in conjunction with the foreigner. Should we tail them?"

The pair of hidden observers, both sitting in a tiny hide nearly a mile from Hill House, were heavily camouflaged, observing the two Ghouls occupying the house through binoculars.

"Negative." The heavily modulated woman's voice that came back was harsh. "Let them go, and let's see how this plays out. Kanou will wish to hear of this."

A thousand miles away, Veronica Lang ran her fingers through her long red hair, looking up from the screen that carried drone footage of the pair of young Ghouls.

"Is his progress satisfactory for you, Joker?"

Veronica whirled, looking up into the eyes of the elegant woman standing behind her. Very few people knew her old callsign, and she only allowed former member of her team to use it in her presence.

"Why, yes he is, Lucretia." She smiled, "And… Aren't you proud of your son, he found every piece of information that we left with Hans. Another few months, and he may even figure out how to get here. Then the real fun begins!"

Joker laughed when she saw Lucretia's face tighten at the word 'son'.

"Do you truly think this is a good idea," Lucretia asked, changing the subject even as she brought her face back to its usual impassive glare, "I was never able to control him as a child. What makes you think we can-"

"Control him? Why would I do that, Lucretia, my dear?" Joker laughed, "He carries one of the seven Royal genes. Or did you forget that he isn't yours?"

Lucretia scowled, but Joker chuckled again.

"He will rule with the others." She turned back towards the screen, watching the King riding with another's Queen. "In a world rid of those miserable humans."

* * *

"I've never seen so many stars."

Ace looked up from where he was pumping gas into the motorcycles tank. He'd forgotten how small it was, but wouldn't have traded the way it rode for anything. Touka and he had spent several hours on the mountainous backroads, banking in and out of turns at over 115 MPH on average. And now, after having the motorcycle screaming beneath him, and the warm weight of Touka on his back, the world felt strangely cold and quiet.

 _No, no, no! Get out of my head, stupid thoughts!_ Ace shook his head violent, dispelling a particularly lurid thought tangent, before turning to Touka.

"Yeah, once you get away from the city a little bit, and the light bleed goes away, you can see how full the sky really is."

The gas pump beeped something at him, and he saw that it was saying 'Card Not Accepted, please pay inside'. Looking towards the store itself, he couldn't see anyone through the large glass windows, and the gas was messing with his sense of smell. Strange.

"Hey, Touka, I'm gonna head inside for a minute." He said innocently, not waiting for her response, and glad that she was so enraptured by the stars, that, being a girl from the city, she'd never seen before.

Heading in through the doors, the bell rang, and Ace heard muffled talking from the room behind the counter. After a few moments, a young harried-looking woman came out. Ace immediately knew something was wrong, the way her eyes bugged out at the sight of the large black-clad and helmeted figure standing before her counter. There was fear behind her eyes, but not fear of him.

"H- How can I help you?" The woman, who could be no older than Ace himself, said.

"I need a receipt for Pump 2." Ace said casually, leaving his face-shield down. As the girl tapped away at her machine, Ace finally got a good whiff of what was in the store.

 _Ghoul stench._ Grabbing a pen from the countertop and snatching his receipt, he quickly wrote ' _Are you ok'_ and held it up for the clerk to see while saying aloud, "My friend and I looking to have some fun, know anyplace in town open this late?"

The young girl shook her head slightly to answer the question.

"Yeah, there are a few places in town, Bubba's is open 24/7." She said, as Ace wrote and circled the word _Ghoul?_.

When she nodded, Ace dropped all pretenses and vaulted the counter.

The Ghoul crouching on the other side was of the skinny, feral type that cropped up once in awhile when an American Ghoul found themselves unable to not eat humans. He wore the remains of a baggy t-shirt and jeans, though they were frayed to the point of almost non-existence.

Stepping into the room, the Ghoul snarled at him, standing protectively over the already partially consumed corpse of another young clerk. Behind him, Ace heard the other clerk run through the back door.

"Mine!" The feral said, a bikaku kagune colored a sickly green snaking out from his tail, "Both are mine!"

Not wanting to mess up his riding leathers, and weary of reporting this incident to his superiors, Ace simply stepped in close and grabbed the Ghoul by throat and kagune, lifting him into the air.

"Wrong, buddy." Ace said, as he snapped the feral's neck with a vicious movement of his hand.

Dropping the corpse to the ground, Ace went into the manager's office and destroyed the security camera equipment, being especially careful to rip the CDs with that nights recording apart. Then he made his way back outside.

Touka was leaning against the bike, but still looking upwards.

"I don't think we ever see stars like this in Japan. It's beautiful." She looked up as a car came screeching around the corner of the store, pulling onto the road in a cloud of dust. "Um… What happened?"

"Feral Ghoul." Ace said, climbing onto the bike, "Let's go, before the cops get here."

The police weren't long in arriving, a blue-and-white screaming by them less than half a mile away from the crime scene. Behind him, he heard the police cars wheels squeal as he threw the brakes on. Looking behind him, he could see that the police officer had spun his car around, and was racing after them.

"Hold on tight!" Ace yelled back to her as they screamed up the exit ramp and onto the interstate, barely avoiding another police car that was exiting at full speed. As they reached the top, and the dozen other police cars resolved themselves, Ace gunned the bike, feeling the front tire lift off the ground a few inches as they accelerated past 100 MPH.

Apparently warned by the first officer to have seen them, the entire pack of police cars gave chase, but were easily left behind as Ace accelerated to the motorcycles top speed, the wind buffeting them and nearly drowning out the screaming engine as they touched the 200 MPH mark.

Touka yelled something from behind him, her arms tightening further around his chest, until he thought she was going to break a rib. Having nearly a mile between him and the nearest police car, Ace took the next exit and backtracked all the way home, flying down backroads without a headlight to avoid detection.

Pulling back into Hill House's garage, Ace quickly pulled the motorcycle to the back of the garage, draping a cloth over it. Touka stood by the door, a small smile upon her face.

"Thank you, Ace." Touka said softly when he approached, touching his shoulder before letting her arm drop away. The smile slid from her lips, and the now familiar sadness formed in its place, "I'm… sorry if I've been a burden on you. I know that you didn't have to offer me a place to stay after… after Tokyo."

Ace let his own sad smile cross his lips.

"Touka… We both lost someone we cared about… at the end." Ace said finally, seeing the tears welling up in Touka's eyes. "You lost… far, far more. And you were my friend, so don't ever worry about having a place to stay while here. You're all that I have left of my time in Tokyo."

His hand came up of its own volition, brushing some hair out of Touka's face. He hadn't noticed until now how _long_ her hair had gotten, falling down past her shoulders. For a few moments, their gazes were locked, but then Ace pulled away.

"Comeon, we need to get inside and get these riding leathers off and hidden."

Ace headed upstairs, stripping the leathers off and quickly scrubbing his hands and forearms. Then he threw on a comfortable t-shirt and headed downstairs. Touka was nowhere to be seen, so Ace went to the fridge and pulled a chunk of his weekly ration out.

 _I regret not eating that damned feral_. Ace said as he cut a slice from the manflesh and plopped it in his mouth. _And… damn, it's 4 A.M. Might as well stay up and watch the sun rise._

Sitting down on the couch, Ace kicked the leg rest out, reclining to a comfortable position.

He woke up several minutes later, not noticing that he had nodded off. Touka had apparently showered, and it had apparently washed away much more than any dirt or grime, as she smiled at him. Ace returned it, then remembered a text he had received several days earlier.

"So, Touka," Ace said as she sat on the far end of the couch, "My sister is going to be going to the beach in Maryland tomorrow… er, _today_." Ace paused when her eyes narrowed slightly, "She gave me an open invite, as she'll be spending time with her boyfriend and her other classmates. Would you like to go?"

Touka nodded, and then turned the TV on.

"Alright, we'll leave at eleven sharp," Ace murmured, slowly nodding off again, "Or… make that noon."

* * *

Ace woke up suddenly, bathed in sweat. Touka was staring at him from the other end of the couch.

He'd been dreaming. _No_ , it had been more real than a dream, as if he had actually been there. All that he could remember of it was that he'd been on a grassy savannah, and that he'd been stalking something.

"So you had a dream that you were a lion?" Touka asked when he relayed what he had dreamed.

"No, I was definitely a human. But… That's all I can remember." Ace said, uncertain what the dream had been about. Touka shrugged her shoulders and headed to her room, while Ace went to his. A short while later, they met outside again, ready for their trip.

"You look nice, Touka." Ace complimented, seeing the blue sundress and white, floppy brimmed hat she wore. She'd let her long, bluish-black hair grow long, and she'd pulled it back into a loose ponytail.

Something tugged at his heart for a moment, but Ace pushed away the thoughts that threatened to come flooding in.

"You do as well." Touka said, smiling from under the hat.

A loose, red Hawaiian shirt and a pair of khaki chinos, plus a panama, hat were the attire that Ace had chosen.

"Well, we've got a bit of a drive. Might as well get on the road." Ace said, rolling both of their suitcases behind him. Opening the garage, he led Touka into the closed-off side of the garage. There was a car inside, covered by a thick trap. Opening the garage's secondary door, Ace quickly stripped the car cover.

It was his Dad's pride and joy, a meticulously restored '67 Corvette in metallic blue. His Dad had built it before he'd met Mom, and had apparently upgraded it when she'd gone into quarantine when she was pregnant with Ace.

"They only made 20 of this model, and only a few of those had a convertible top," Ace said, running his hand along the hood, fondly remembering all the times he and his Dad had taken it out. "A 427 Big Block making 435 Horsepower and…"

Seeing the total non-comprehension from Touka about what he was saying, Ace let out an awkward laugh and opened the door. The black leather interior smelled immaculate, just as his Dad had left it when they'd left for Japan. Dropping the top and getting their suitcases situated in the back seat, he watched Touka climb in, and then climbed in himself.

"Cover your ears." Ace said as he slid the key in, Touka looked at him, hesitating for a moment when she shot him a questioning glance. But she complied, covering her ears. The 427 cranked over loudly, filling the single car garage which the Corvette occupied with a grumbling, before it started and filled the garage with a roar that made Touka let out a startled little yell.

Ace laughed, putting the Corvette into 1st and pulling it out of the garage, hitting the garage door button as he went by. Touka hit him in the shoulder, hard enough that it stung, but laughed as well.

The wind whipping at their hair, Ace and Touka pulled out onto the road, with a-ha's 'Take on Me' blaring from the radio.

* * *

Ace pulled up next to the long line of parked vehicles, turning the radio down for the first time in a few hours. Stepping out, he listened to the crashing waves for a moment, surveying the area around them.

"She should be around here someplace…"

"Aeneas!" A vaguely familiar voice called out, and Ace turned to see his sister charging towards him. Dione Lincoln was only a few inches short than he was, with the same dark hair, though she kept hers down to her shoulders. She was a welcome sight, but the man that Ace caught a glimpse of before his sister locked him in a rib crushing hug was not. "It's so nice to see you!"

She pushed him away after a few moments, looking up into his face.

"You… You look so much _older_!" Dione exclaimed, touching his chin for a moment. Then she looked towards Touka, seeming to notice her for the first time. "And you brought your friend!"

Dione, as she was apt to do, then fawned over Touka, as Ace sized up the man behind his sister.

"Whatsup, Fuckup?" The other tall Ghoul said, his kakugan appearing. "I saw on the news that everyone thinks you're a hero. My Dad thinks you just screwed up."

Agent Chad Duncan Hanson was only a year older than Ace, but he had made his time at the Agency school completely miserable, especially when he'd found out about Ace's _incident_ s. For years he had been physical and verbally abusive, until he'd attempted, with his little gang, to catch Ace in the showers. _That_ incident had had major repercussions for both of them, especially Ace, but had been worth it in the end, as it had taken the physical element of the abuse away. It hadn't stopped Chad from christening him with a bevy of horrible nicknames.

Ace stepped closer to Chad, who wore nothing but a bathing suit, peering down at him.

"You can call me Ace. You can call me Aeneas. You can call me Senior Agent." Ace leaned in close, his own strange kakugan flaring to life, still emanating a strange glow as they had in Tokyo, "But if you call me Fuckup or any of your other stupid names, I'll rip out your spleen."

Chad looked taken aback, but sneered up at him.

"Threatening a fellow Agent," He said derisively, "Your time in Tokyo really changed you. I ought to report you to the Agency…"

Seeing that the small crowd, mostly his sister's fellow students were looking at him, Ace took a step back, turning to his sister and smiling. They chatted, and Touka and he were introduced to her other friends, all the while, Ace was trying to calm down.

After partying the rest of the day, and part of the night, on the beach, playing volleyball (whose rules were different when Ghouls played it), Dione, Touka and Ace found themselves back at the beachhouse Dione was renting. Without Chad.

"I really don't know how you can date that douchebag." Ace said in English, before translating it into Japanese for Touka as he had done for most of the day, even though his sister spoke Japanese fluently.

"Chad is a good man, once you get past the veneer," Dione said as they sat on the porch under the strings of Christmas lights that the owner of the beachhouse used in place of a lamp, "I know he and you have had some… colorful history. But you didn't need to threaten to rip out his spleen."

Ace took a sip from his glass of bloodwine, his _second_ glass, and looked at Touka, who was also a pair of glasses in. After a moment, he downed the rest of the glass.

"Ehh… Fuck'em." Ace slurred, his cheeks heating. "Man… I am _feeling_ this stuff!"

With the eyes of the other two on him, Ace extended a rinkaku tentacle towards the rest of the bottle. It moved like an unsteady snake, however, weaving through the air, and completely missing the bottle. And the same on the second try, and even when he added in another rinkaku, he still couldn't quite grab the bottle.

"Ace, I think it's time to goto bed," Dione said, looking aside at Touka as the foreign woman stood and stretched. Ace became like a sack of potatoes, his rinkaku retracting as he laid his head on his own shoulder and fell asleep, "So, Touka… are you and my brother _involved_?"

Touka gave her a confused look, brow furrowing as she tried to unravel the mystery of what Dione had just said. It finally clicked, and Touka flushed a deep shade of red.

"Uh… N-No. At least, I…" Touka cursed herself as her tongue seemed to be not want to work properly. "Tokyo was… hard on both of us. We both lost a lot of people we cared about."

Dione nodded knowingly, and then disappeared into the house dragging her brother. Neither of them saw the dozen figures slowly approaching out of the ocean.

* * *

Ace roused from his sleep suddenly as the smell of blood permeated the air.

"Oh… Oh _god_! What the _fuck!_ "

Pieces of flesh and blood were scattered around the room, and Ace was covered in the same. He was lying in the center of the kitchen floor, lying in a puddle of blood. The sun was just rising.

Struggling to his feet, he knew that he hadn't done this. The kagune marks weren't his, and there were marks that showed that several ukaku had had a battle in the house.

 _How… How didn't I hear any of this?_ Ace thought as his stomach rumbled. _And… I'm hungry. I didn't feed, this wasn't my doing!_

The only thing untouched in the room was a simple card on the table, with a smiling clown on the cover. Upon seeing that, the gears clicked in his mind, and rage filled him. His hunger went away as that rage consumed him.

Checking the house, he confirmed that Touka and Dione weren't present. Grabbing the card from the table, he opened it and read.

 _Hope you're having a_ GREAT _vacation! We decided to take your sister and friend to visit some brave souls in Arlington. Be there by 5 PM today or else we'll have to drop the curtain on them!_

The writing was looping, pretty handwriting, as if someone had taken the time to write the card out at their desk. Ace went upstairs and grabbed a clean set of clothing, stripping and washing the blood from his body quickly before pulling on jeans and a t-shirt.

 _So, those fucking Clowns finally found me… And they took Touka and my sister to Arlington National Cemetary…_

" _What the hell!_ " A voice said from the doorway as Ace was working to sabotage the gas powered stove to burn the beachhouse down. "What did you do to Dione!"

Chad stood in the doorway mouth agape and eyes wide. As Ace turned and made eye contact, Chad snarled, his koukaku ripping from his shoulder and forming a shiny green lance over his right arm.

"You're under arrest!" Chad said, stabbing Ace through the stomach. "For murder!"

Ripping through the side of his stomach, Ace momentarily let himself come off balance as he fell away from the stove.

"I didn't do anything." Ace pleaded from the floor, his own blood joining the gallons that soaked the beachhouses wood flooring, "I'm being framed!"

"Tell it to the judge, Fuckup!"

Chad went to strike Ace through the heart, but his own koukaku covered arm grabbed the tip of Chad's koukaku lance and held it, less than an inch from his chest.

"I think I already told you what would happen if you called me that again," Ace said coldly, his massive stomach wound healing almost instantly. His rinkaku shot out, stabbing into Chad's torso, and coming away with a nearly intact spleen. "Asshole."

Chad collapsed to the ground, his regeneration abilities struggling to keep him alive. Ace kicked him out the door into the sand, and finished messing with the stove, carefully lighting a candle a few feet away.

Dragging Chad with a rinkaku, Ace headed for the Corvette. As he turned the motor on, leaving Chad badly wounded in the community parking lot, the house ripped apart and sent a fireball high into the sky.

 _Woops_.

Leaning out of the Corvette, and looking down at Chad, who was moaning and pawing at his wound, Ace gave him a dirty look.

"Stop being a baby, you'll survive that if you stop messing with it, weakling." Ace said, "Now, I've got to go find the fuckers that did this."

Ace pulled onto US-50 and blew past the speed limit, relying on his reaction timing to help him make it through the traffic. He was just passing the Queenstown Premium Outlets where the 301 and US-50 merged when his phone rang.

"Senior Agent Lincoln, please pull your car over." Control's calm voice said, "There will be no second warning."

"Control, someone is framing me." Ace said, looking in his rearview and seeing four black SUVs weaving through traffic towards him. "This is all a set-up. And I've got someplace to be by-"

"Pull your car over, Agent Lincoln."

Ace angrily ended the call, accelerating through traffic. He was nearly back into Washington…

Ahead of him in traffic, another pair of black SUVs pulled out in front of him, and immediately began trying to push him into the guardrail. Ace tapped the brakes, deftly slipping between the two larger vehicles and back onto a mostly clear highway. The Corvettes engine roared as he flashed through the town of Chester near the center of Kent island, clipping a car as he slide-slipped around it and sending it spinning. He fought the wheel, but ended up ripping off his side mirror as he careened into the opposite guardrail. Recovering, and still traveling at a high speed, Ace took the final corner towards the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, noticing that the highway was now completely clear of other traffic.

He nearly slammed on the brakes as he saw the roadblock in front of him, made up of police cruisers and Agency vehicles, along with nearly forty men and women with weapons trained on him.

 _Nearly_ slammed on them.

 _Sorry, Dad._ Ace thought as he continued his headlong charge, his koukaku forming an armor across his chest and arms.

That was when he saw the hulking figure standing near the center of the roadblock.

Brock Abena, lead agent of the Special Operations Group. Codenamed the Titan.

And he was staring passively towards the onrushing Corvette, seeming unconcerned. That was until Ace got within a hundred feet, and the entire roadblock seemed to explode, as every person on the roadblock opened fire at some unseen signal. A pair of shoulder fired rockets were fired, taking the Corvette right through the center of the hood, sending the car flipping through the air.

* * *

"Apprehend the suspect." Director Brock Abena said into his throat mic, his order immediately sending a half-dozen of his own SOG agents moving towards the burning wreckage less than fifty feet away. "I doubt that Abe's little twerp is alive, anyways."

"Sir, look." Brock heard someone say, likely one of the other, non-SOG agents.

"Well, I'll be dipped."

He trigged his kakuja.

* * *

Ace advanced out of the wreckage, having torn his Father's prized vehicle apart as his kakuja formed. He immediately charged the six Agents who were approaching, who tried to engage him with firearms but, seeing the futility of that tried to engage him with their own kagune.

He tore through them, careful not to permanently kill any of them, heading towards his strongest opponent. The Titan had already let his own kakuja appear, and charged to meet Ace.

They met explosively, the force of their impact causing the bridge below them to shudder, and the asphalt and concrete beneath their feet to crack. Titan was slightly taller, but also far heavier, with thick plates of rock-like armor covering him, in addition to the terrifying tribal mask that his kakuja had formed.

Titan also had nearly three decades of experience across several wars, and hundreds of operations. He had assassinated dozens of rebel leaders, despots and Ghoul gang leaders, many of whom had been powerful kakuja Ghouls.

And yet it didn't help him against Ace.

Ace felt his kakuja's arms shatter as they met Titans, and so another pair, tipped with needle like kagune lances, burst from below the others, stabbing up through the gaps in Titans kakuja armor. The other Kakuja roared in pain and tried to pull away, but Ace's top pair of arms healed and he maintained his grip.

Seeing their leader struggling, three of the other SOG members rallied the remaining Agents, their police escorts already having fled onto the bridge. With wild yells, they charged, breaking several regulations and releasing their wild, uncontrollable half formed kakuja's. The dozen other Agents slowed a step in awe as the trio launched towards the pair of fully formed kakuja, their kagune poised to deliver a fatal strike to the rebel Ghoul.

 _Too slow._ Ace thought, as the Wolf burst from his back, sending all three sprawling, before ripping the arms off of one of them. The other two quickly recovered, one of them stabbing through Ace's chest armor, his bikaku ripping a hole through it. The crazed Agent smirked even as he struggled to control his kakuja, but looked on in horror as two more Wolf's joined the first, and Ace dealt a final harsh blow to Titan.

The power coursing through him was intense, but he felt a nagging sensations. A _need,_ besides hunger.

For a moment, he was transported to a faraway field, with tall grass. Below him, walking under his tree, were a group of humanoids. They lingered for a moment, their fur standing on end. Then one of them looked up, and let out a yell of alarm. Ace dropped upon that one, as it had been the first to look up, he would implant that one…

Ace came to from the… dream? Vision? Still locked in a life or death struggle with several other kakuja. But now, that nagging sensation became more noticeable, until Ace was forced to do something.

Inside of Titan, Ace broke off a tiny section of his kagune, and then withdrew his attack. Now, he concentrated on the trio of halfs that were fighting for their lives against his Wolves. But as he withdrew, he could almost feel the little piece of kagune he left within Titan, a tiny, fleeting pulse that seemed to contain a different heartbeat than his own.

Seeing that Titan was no longer moving, Ace let rinkaku tentacles burst from the Wolves, stabbing into their targets, and broke off several pieces within them. Their kakuja dissipated and they collapsed to the ground. The other Agents, seeing this, fled, taking potshots with their rifles and pistols that didn't even get close enough for Ace to feel them. The Agency seemed to have become lax in its training.

 _Thumpthumthump._ He felt it again, different heartbeats than his own. What had he just done?

Ace released his kakuja, feeling slightly drained from his ordeal. He walked over to where Titan lay, now without his Kakuja and slowly swimming out of unconsciousness. When he saw Ace, his eyes dilated strangely, and he looked up at him, enraptured.

"I did not do what I am accused of." Ace said simply, looking over his shoulder as the sound of a helicopter grew. "You have to believe me, Director."

"It's… hard to believe you." Director Abena said, his dark skin coated in sweat, "You tried to cover your tracks… Can you blame us for jumping to conclusions?"

"I was in a hurry, and had hoped to have it solved by the time we reached this point," Ace thought harshly of Chad, "But I was unfortunately not able to, do to some interference. Now, I have to rescue my friends."

"Where are you going?" Abena asked, seeming to strain against something.

"When the brave die for their country, where do they lie?" Ace said cryptically, leaping over the edge of the bridge and down into the waters.


End file.
